Thane, April 3 A 46-year-old man has been arrested in the city for allegedly defrauding jewelers, and gold bars worth approximately Rs 2.3 crore were recovered from his possession, police said on Friday.
Jeevaram Vani Chaudhary was apprehended by the Crime Branch Unit-1 following an investigation across multiple states, according to a police release.
Chaudhary, who is from Rajasthan, allegedly cheated several jewelers in Thane and Bhiwandi during Diwali in 2023 by offering to supply high-quality gold. The jewelers paid him in advance, after which he allegedly disappeared without providing the promised quantity of the yellow metal.
Cases have been registered against him at the Thane Nagar police station under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Chaudhary evaded arrest by constantly changing his location, but finally, a team led by police sub-inspector Deepak Ghuge tracked him down and arrested him last month, the release said.
During the investigation, the team travelled to Rajasthan's Pali district and recovered valuable items, including gold bars weighing over 1.9 kg, worth approximately Rs 2.30 crore, along with Rs 17.5 lakh in cash.
Further investigation is ongoing.