Nearly a year after the Cunchelim land scam shook Goa, Mapusa Police arrested the last three accused involved in the fraudulent sale of protected land late Thursday night.
The trio – Raju Mandrekar, Raja Anthony, and Sumit Phadte – had been evading the law despite serious allegations of orchestrating the sale of Comunidade and government-acquired land to unsuspecting buyers.
Months ago, three others—Ramesh Rao (Mapusa Municipal Council staffer), Shakil Shaikh, and Ravi Chavan—were apprehended in connection with the same scam.
Victims reported being duped into purchasing plots sized between 100 and 250 sqm, paying anywhere from Rs 4.5 lakh to Rs 8 lakh, based on forged documents and false assurances of ownership and construction permits. However, the lands either belonged to the Cunchelim Comunidade or had been acquired by the government.
The fraud unraveled when buyers who had started construction saw their homes demolished last year due to illegal occupation, exposing the scam’s scale.
While the initial arrests happened swiftly, the remaining trio’s close political connections allowed them to remain at large for months, sparking criticism of selective policing and alleged political shielding. “This was not just a land scam, but a betrayal of public trust,” said one victim who lost his life savings.
Reports also suggest that some Cunchelim Comunidade members and Mapusa municipal councillors are under investigation for facilitating or ignoring the illegal sale.
The case revealed severe gaps in land governance and highlighted how fraudsters manipulated documents to sell protected land.
With these arrests, police are set to dig deeper into the network of collusion, including possible white-collar and political beneficiaries. Further arrests are expected as the investigation continues.
