Six arrested in Malad real estate fraud, main accused still at large

According to police records, an FIR has been registered against Khan at the Dahisar police station, where he allegedly duped a person of Rs 31 lakh. In another case registered at the Kashimira police station, he is accused of cheating a man of Rs 1.1 crore.

The arrested accused have been identified as Hitesh Ravindra Kedari, 30, and Rajesh Prasad, 37, both delivery boys residing in Dahisar (East) and Kandivali (West), respectively; Nimesh Mevani, 49, who posed as the flat owner and lives in Thane; Mohammad Rafiq Rashid Khan, 38, a resident of Andheri (West); Deepak Shah, 47, a property broker from Nalasopara; and Rajan Kakkar, 45, a resident of Borivali (West).

According to the police, the complainant, Naval Rajput, 31, a resident of Malad (West), had been searching for a flat on a real estate website for nearly six months. Between November and December last year, he received a call from Amit Thakur, who offered him a flat in a building on Zakaria Road in Malad (West). Thakur’s associates, Roshan Yadav and Deepak Shah, allegedly showed Rajput a flat on the 13th floor, which he agreed to purchase.

“After negotiation, the deal was finalised at Rs. 1.10 crore,” said a police officer.

Police said Shah later introduced a man claiming to be the flat owner, Popatlal Sandesha, and provided forged documents of the property. Trusting the documents, Rajput paid Rs 26 lakh by cheque and Rs 4 lakh in cash as an initial amount. “The victim had recorded a video while handing over cheque and cash,” said a police officer.

The fraud came to light when Rajput began asking for registration of the flat and Thakur allegedly kept avoiding the issue. Rajput then visited the society office and learnt that while the flat owner’s name was indeed Popatlal Sandesha, the person who had accepted the cheque and cash was an impostor.

Rajput subsequently approached the Malad police, who registered a case on December 29, 2025, under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

During the investigation, police traced the bank account holder, Kedari, and arrested him along with Rajesh Prasad on January 7. Based on their interrogation, Rajan Kakkar and Ravi alias Rafiq Khan were arrested last week. Deepak Shah, who showed the flat to the victim, and Nimesh Mevani, who posed as the owner, were arrested on January 13.

“All four are in police custody till January 20, while Kedari and Prasad have been sent to judicial custody,” said a police officer.