Pune Crime: Gang of five dupe businessman of Rs 3.35 crore

A 35-year-old businessman — dealing in sports accessories and fitness equipment — was duped of Rs 3.35 crore by a gang of five, including three women

A 35-year-old businessman — dealing in sports accessories and fitness equipment — was duped of Rs 3.35 crore by a gang of five, including three women. The gang conned Vineet Grover by sanctioning a business loan and later diverting the amount to another company’s account via the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system.

Grover, a resident of Rasta Peth, lodged an FIR against the five suspects at the Cantonment police station. They were identified as Ketan Shah from Sopanbaug, Hadapsar, Devendra Ramesh Parekh from Gagan Galaxy in Bibwewadi, Yogita Nibhjiya of Ramoshi Gate in Bhavani Peth, Rajendra Menon from Nagpur, and his wife Yamini.

All five have been booked under sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

According to Grover, the suspects used a fake quotation in the name of 56 Blue Lights Company instead of Sam Associates, and then diverted the loan amount. The sports and fitness equipment that were supposed to be delivered to him, never reached him.

Police Sub-Inspector D S Nikam from Cantonment police station, said “Grover needed money to expand his business and sought help from his friend Ketan Shah in December 2013. Shah assured him of securing a loan worth Rs 3.90 crore. He mortgaged Grover’s residence and office on Mahatma Gandhi Road in Camp area for the same.”

Nikam added that Shah took cheques from Grover, out of which three were blank. He later forged Grover’s signatures on those cheques and transferred the amount in different accounts of Sam Associates in a Nagpur bank using the RTGS system.

“After committing the crime, the suspects produced a fake quotation in the name of 56 Blue Lights Company. Besides claiming a commission of Rs 60 lakh for sanctioning the loan, the suspects took Rs 2.75 crore of the disbursed amount. But, despite paying the money, the complainant didn’t receive the consignment, following which he lodged a police complaint,” the PSI said.

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