Cops nab impostor who duped Mishra family of Rs 2.8 crore from a hotel yesterday
Jogeshwari-based Mishra family, which was duped of Rs 2.8 crore by a girl claiming to be the estranged daughter of West Bengal CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, found some comfort on Sunday with the news that the impostor had been nabbed. The Amboli police yesterday arrested the 28-year-old from a hotel in Andheri.
MiD DAY had reported ('Deceived of Rs 2.8 crore by WB CM's Daughter', February 5) about how the Mishras a family of four had rented their flat in Malad to Parimeeta Bhattacharya and how, over the course of a year, lent her lump sums against bogus documents and bank papers she showed them.
She duped the family of nearly Rs 2.8 crore which includes their ancestral property, family jewels, house, fixed deposits, insurance, and so on. The well-to-do Mishras are almost bankrupt now, they claim, because of the so-called CM's daughter.
Sanjeev Mishra, son of Kailash and Usha, said, "We lost all our valuables, property, jewellery, near about everything. We are happy that she has been caught and hope to get justice now."
Bhattacharya stayed in the rented house for nearly three years starting 2007 and she defrauded the family over the course of the last year of her stay, by ingratiating herself and impressing them with her spurious credentials.
"She showed us many documents like income tax orders, pan cards, demand drafts, and we believed them to be authentic. She kept taking money from my whole family, coming up with genuine-sounding excuses every time," said Usha.
They had lodged a complaint with Economic Offences Wing, who had then transferred it to the local police station.
And after trying to trace her for two weeks, cops finally caught up with her at the hotel. They revealed that the Mishra family is not the only one that she has led down the garden path she has accepted that she cozened two others to the tune of a few lakhs. Details are not known as police officials refused to share them.
Rajendra Kane, investigating officer, Amboli police station, said, "We arrested the girl on Sunday from a hotel and are investigating the case." She will be in police custody until March 5.