in a shocking case of car fraud, Rajdev, a director of a software company, was arrested by the Phase One Police in Noida for absconding with a Tata Safari worth Rs 26 lakh. He and his wife, Koyal Dev, allegedly used a fake cheque clearance message to trick Sagar Motors into handing over the vehicle. The fraud came to light during an internal audit at Rajdev’s company, Devex.
According to police reports, Rajdev and his wife initially booked the Tata Safari on August 10 last year, paying only Rs 11,000. They issued a cheque from their personal bank account for Rs 26 lakh, but the account balance showed only Rs 995. After providing a fake cheque clearance message, they took delivery of the vehicle and quickly resold it for Rs 12 lakh to Lalit Kumar Dixit in Delhi.
The fraud was uncovered when Sagar Motors realized the cheque had not cleared. Further investigations revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Rajdev and his wife had previously used the same fraudulent method to acquire other luxury vehicles, including a Grand Vitara worth Rs 22 lakh from Rana Motors in Noida and a Toyota Hilux worth Rs 30 lakh from Galaxy Toyota in Delhi.
In each case, the couple took delivery of the vehicles using fake cheque messages, sold them at below-market prices, and pocketed the difference. Authorities believe they may have committed similar scams in other cities, and investigations are underway into their criminal history and the full extent of their operations.