The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police has arrested a Kolhapur-based developer in connection with a Rs55 crore housing redevelopment fraud in Versova, Andheri.
The arrested accused, Amrut Uttam Mahendrakar (34), a resident of Ichalkaranji in Kolhapur district, is alleged to have assisted in preparing forged documents and facilitating the illegal sale and mortgaging of flats that were meant for members of a housing society.
According to officials from the Mumbai Police Economic Offences Wing, Mahendrakar worked with other accused persons in a scheme that allegedly cheated residents of Zakaria Aghadi Nagar No.3 Co‑operative Housing Society, located in Versova, Andheri, by fraudulently mortgaging and selling their flats.
Police said the society had appointed Mid City Heights, a partnership firm, in 2015 to redevelop its aging building consisting of 13 flats. The developer had promised the 13 residents—who collectively owned 14 flats—that they would receive new homes within a stipulated timeframe after redevelopment.
However, during the project, society members allegedly discovered that several flats allotted to them under the Permanent Alternate Accommodation Agreement (PAAA) had been mortgaged to financial institutions and even sold to third parties without their knowledge or consent.
The complaint in the case was filed by Meena Singh Thilon (71), a member associated with the housing society. Based on her complaint, a case was registered at Versova Police Station.
Investigators revealed that Amarjit Shukla, the owner of Mid City Heights, along with his associates, allegedly created forged sale agreements and pledged multiple flats to banks in order to obtain loans worth several crores of rupees. Shukla had already been arrested by police in August last year.
Authorities suspect that fake agreements for sale, forged signatures of the Joint Deputy Registrar, and counterfeit stamps were used in the documentation process to carry out the fraud.
Mahendrakar is the second accused to be arrested in the case. The EOW is continuing its investigation to trace other individuals involved in the alleged scam and determine the full extent of the financial fraud.
