‘Builder’ held for duping banks

Vasant More

Made A Fortune Of Rs 1.65 Cr By Swindling Unsuspecting Home-Buyers As Well

By Mateen Hafeez/TNN

Mumbai: Vasant Vaman More took a slightly complicated route to swindle home-buyers and city branches of leading banks of Rs 1.65 crore but the law caught up with him when he was arrested from his Pune residence last week.

More, wanted for the last three years for alleged involvement in several cases, was sent to police custody till April 24.

A civil draftsman by profession, More claimed to have constructed at least 10 buildings in the city. Based on his claims, the loans of 30 home-buyers were sanctioned by banks and the pay-orders were deposited in his account. Officials said he had started constructing only one building in Ghatkopar.

Investigating officer Neela Udaseen said More approached the builders of a Mira Road project (called Avani Constructions), signed an MoU for buying 15 flats and gave them four cheques worth Rs 35 lakh.

Three cheques were honoured but the fourth bounced, prompting the builders to tell him that they could hand over the ownership rights of only three flats to him as the other cheques bounced.

But More kept a copy of the original MoU; there, he changed the name of Avani Constructions to Dharti Constructions and prepared 15 fake agreements. He then approached 15 people, seeking to buy homes, and convinced them into dealing with him as he could give them homes cheap. “The home-buyers then visited the Avani Constructions site which More said was his property. They believed him as there was no signboard,’’ Udaseen said.

More then instructed them to approach the State Bank of Mysore (Khar branch) for loans. The bank sanctioned the loans and pay-orders worth Rs 94.34 lakh were issued in More’s name.

Bank officials realised they had been taken for a ride only after no one repaid the loans. Manager Patrik Oswal Pinto lodged a complaint with the police.

A probe revealed More never gave a flat to any one but gave them sums between Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000 and a gold chain each as “gifts’’. Bank officials told police that they came to know about the fraud only after they made inquiries.

More used the same route to cheat the State Bank of Mysore (Lokhandwala branch) of Rs 52 lakh. He sent eight home loanseekers to the bank and pay-orders were deposited to his account.

The Samata Nagar police station registered a case against More in 2003 when he sent home loan-seekers to the Kandivli (E) branch of Dena Bank and pay-orders were deposited in his account.

The bank asked him to return the money after realising his claims were false. More, however, had encashed pay-orders of Rs 18.75 lakh by then. But he returned the amount after a court order.

The Times of India, April 21, 2006