28 July,2016 04:45 PM IST | | Asif Rizvi
When the dream of a young model to enter Bollywood did not work out, this man from New Delhi turned to crime
When the dream of a young model to enter Bollywood did not work out, this man from New Delhi turned to crime.
Hiralal Raikawar aka Prince, 21, has been arrested by the police on charges of cheating many students looking for houses on rent. The case has been registered with the DB marg police station.
Prince committed the crime with his accomplice Abdul Shaikh aka Raju, 31 who he met through their mutual friends. They used to stay together. Prince then told Raju that he was looking for modelling or acting assignments but as he was a struggling artist he also wanted a source of living. Raju offered him a job in his real estate and flats on lease company, Mumbai Accommodation Solutions in Opera House's Pearl Arcade and gave him an offer. He also lured him with perks including commissions on each deal he cracked and that would maximum be in a lakh.
"Prince's job was to get customers for mainly paying guests for three flats in south Mumbai including two in Girgaum area and one in Gamdevi. Prince used the word of mouth for publicity for his business. Some people also contacted him through pamphlets which were stuck outside reputed colleges of south Mumbai. Prince showed students flats and once they zeroed in, they were asked to pay heavy deposit. They were, however never given possession. On July 19, a complaint was registered against Prince and Raju and two days later, two similar complaints were received at the DB Marg police station following which the FIR was registered against the duo."
The police investigations has revealed that their 'office' in the Opera house and the three flats which were shown to clients were on rent. Four victims, all college students had paid over a lakh per head as deposit amounts but weeks passed by and when they did not get the committed accommodations they approached the police.
Police sub inspector, Nitin Lavande of the DB Marg police station said, "Prince has been arrested under section 420 and 34 of the IPC and is in the judicial custody whereas search for the accused is going on."
