Maharashtra Police have arrested 27-year-old Pranavananda Mondal from Durgapur, West Bengal, for his alleged involvement in a major fraud case involving Rs 16 crore. Mondal, who hails from Borgoria village near Faridpur, is accused of defrauding multiple individuals by promising to set up wireless internet towers on their lands in Nagpur. The accused was arrested early this morning after a raid at his residence. A local court granted Mondal a three-day transit remand to transfer him to Maharashtra for further questioning.
According to police sources, Mondal was part of a larger gang that targeted landowners in Nagpur, convincing them to invest in the erection of wireless towers that never materialized. Over several months, he collected large sums of money from his victims, amounting to a total of Rs 16 crore. The Maharashtra Police are now investigating the extent of the scam and are looking for other members of the fraudulent network.
Meanwhile, another case involving fraud has unfolded in West Bengal. Eight officials from the Burdwan Municipality, including members of the accounts department, left for Nagpur after an incident involving cheque cloning that resulted in the loss of Rs 1.41 crore. The fraud came to light in September when the municipality discovered that large sums of money had been withdrawn from their account using forged cheques. After the Cyber Police Station in Burdwan investigated, it was found that the fraudulent transactions were carried out in Nagpur, prompting the local police to request assistance from the Nagpur authorities.
Paresh Chandra Sarkar, Chairman of the Burdwan Municipality, confirmed that officials left for Nagpur to assist in the investigation.
Separately, a team from the Chandigarh Police has arrested Charanjit Singh, a notorious drug peddler, in Kanksa, within the Asansol Durgapur Police Commissionerate area. Singh, who had evaded arrest in 2020 after his involvement in a major drug trafficking case, was located after a tip-off. He had previously been involved in trafficking Rs 18 lakh worth of narcotics, which were seized by the Chandigarh Police. Singh had been working as a garage mechanic in Kanksa when he was arrested. A Durgapur court granted him a three-day interim remand for further investigation.
These arrests highlight the ongoing efforts of authorities to tackle different forms of fraud and crime across regions, with law enforcement agencies working together to apprehend suspects and investigate the scams.