Panvel City Police have apprehended Akshay Kalgutkar, who posed as a job agent, defrauding several youths by offering fake job opportunities in the Indian Railways. Kalgutkar was arrested at a dhaba in CBD Belapur after reportedly swindling a Panvel youth of Rs 19.42 lakh.
The scam came to light when Kalgutkar, a Nerul resident, posted a fake job advertisement on Facebook in July 2024, under the name “Job Adda.” The ad lured unemployed individuals seeking employment in the Railways. A young man from Panvel contacted Kalgutkar and was promised a senior clerk position in the Indian Railways.
Kalgutkar initially asked for Rs 3 lakh as a job processing fee. Over the next six months, he continued to extort an additional Rs 16.43 lakh from the victim, citing various formalities such as medical examinations, document verification, and administrative clearances. Ultimately, Kalgutkar provided the victim with a forged appointment letter on a fake Indian Railways letterhead.
When the youth contacted the Railways to verify his appointment, he learned that the letter was fake. Upon realizing he had been duped, the victim tried to reach Kalgutkar, who had gone into hiding. The victim then filed a complaint with the Panvel City Police.
The police, under the supervision of Senior Police Inspector Nitin Thackeray, PSI Abhay Kadam, and Lady Assistant Police Inspector Savita Kadam, initiated an investigation. Kalgutkar had been absconding, but the police, acting on a tip-off, arrested him while he was found consuming alcohol at a local dhaba.
Kalgutkar, who has a history of similar offenses, reportedly confessed to spending the stolen money on gambling. Investigations also revealed that he had previously defrauded friends and acquaintances out of approximately Rs 13 lakh using the same scam method. In addition, Kalgutkar is linked to a larger scam amounting to Rs 75 lakh under the jurisdiction of Rabale MIDC Police Station, where other criminal cases have been filed against him.
Back in June 2018, Kalgutkar was arrested by Nerul Police for cheating friends out of Rs 13 lakh. Despite being granted bail, he failed to appear in court multiple times, which led to the issuance of a non-bailable arrest warrant. Kalgutkar was rearrested in August 2022.
Kalgutkar has been remanded to judicial custody. The authorities are urging other victims of similar scams to come forward. Investigations are ongoing to uncover more fraud cases associated with him.
