Mumbai Crime: Two men dupe jeweller, run away with gold chain worth Rs 20 lakh; arrested

Photo for representational purpose

The LT Marg police have arrested two people for cheating a jeweller of Rs 20 lakh. Investigation revealed that the accused had used fake documents and prepared PAN and Aadhaar cards, and also bogus BMC I-cards.

The accused were identified as Amardeep Patwa (22), a resident of Matunga labour camp, and his associate Ashraf Sayyed (23), a Mahim resident, states a report in the Times of India.

"Patwa made a rental agreement for a purported jewellery shop for 11 months. The shop was started under the name Sony Gold. The agreement was made under the name Ramesh Yadav as tenant. This name was fake," said an officer.

Within four days of starting the shop, Patwa visited several jewellers and introduced himself as Yadav. He told a jeweller that he wanted to place an order for a gold chain and asked him to send gold chains to his shop so that he could select a design. "The jeweller sent his employee to the accused's shop to show him designs. The employee had brought along with him a couple of chains worth about Rs 21 lakh," said investigating officer Sachin Lahamage. Patwa then fled with the jewellery. This is when the jeweller's employee approached the police.

The accused used the rented shop only for five days. To trace him, senior inspector Deepak Nikam formed a team. They tried reaching Patwa's mobile but it was switched off. The police team scanned the call detail record (CDR) of the number.

"This is when the team found Ashraf's number and his location was traced. They picked him up from his residence in Mahim. During questioning, Ashraf said he was studying pharmacy and Patwa asked him to start a business with him. He said that Patwa had prepared Aadhaar and PAN cards under the name Ramesh Yadav. With Ashraf as a front for Yadav, a rent agreement was prepared and submitted online to the police," said an officer.

Based on more information gleaned from the CDR, including about the phone, police reached a paying guest accommodation and found Patwa living there. They recovered two identity cards from him showing himself as a BMC employee. "While the name and photo of Patwa are original, the cards are fake. One facilitates a travel e-pass with QR code," said a police source.