Mumbai police arrest conman who cheated banks, businesses of over Rs 150 crores
Representational Image. Picture Courtesy: India Live
Mumbai police have managed to arrest a man who has likely cheated banks & businesses for over Rs 150 crore in the last few years. The accused would take loans in the name of his company, only to declare them bankrupt at a later date.
The accused, Dhumil Sheth, was produced before a court on Wednesday on charges of cheating and forgery.
Sheth was arrested following a complaint filed by Nikunj Shah of Shambulal A Shah & Company. According to the complainant, Sheth bought paper from the company in 2012 on behalf of Lalit Polyster and failed to pay Rs 1 crore in dues.
According to reports, the accused was expected to make the payment for the purchase by December. However, he kept delaying the payment citing his company’s weak financial position. In 2015, he finally issued a cheque of Rs 1 crore to Nikunj.
When the cheque bounced, Nikunj approached the police.
He conned another businessman, Sumit Shah, of Rs 7 crores by purchasing 100 metric tonnes of paper on behalf of Sharp Industries in 2012. When Sheth failed to make the payment, Sumit too lodged a complaint, following which Sheth was booked by the Economic Offence Wing (EOW).
Sheth has also been booked in two other cases, lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI), where he cheated Maharashtra Bank for over Rs 32 crores.
It is estimated that he has made over Rs 150 crore by conning banks and businesses.
During investigation, CBI figured Sheth’s modus operandi.
According to their findings, Sheth and his family owned at least 25 companies between them. Sheth would take a loan from a bank for one company, transfer the money to one of the family’s firm and then declare the previous company bankrupt.
Police are now trying to ascertain which of his relatives were a part of the scam.
