Two brothers arrested for cheating 149 commission agents of Rs 17 cr

Rajkot: Two brothers who own a trading firm were arrested by the Kuwadva police in Rajkot for allegedly defrauding 146 commission agents at the Bedi Market Yard of Rs 17 crore.

The arrests followed a complaint filed on May 10 by Mansukh Patel of Omkar Trading, one of the affected commission agents at Bedi Market Yard. Acting on the complaint, the Economic Offences Wing of the Rajkot police arrested Bipin Dholariya (55) and his brother Nitesh Dholariya (47), who jointly own J K Trading, on charges of criminal breach of trust and cheating.

According to Patel's complaint, he operates a business in agricultural commodities on a commission basis. Farmers from various regions bring their produce to the market yard, where commission agents facilitate sales. The Dholariya brothers' firm, J K Trading, procured agricultural goods — mainly cumin — from several commission agents operating in the yard.

Since April 5, Omkar Trading alone sold cumin worth Rs 1.18 crore to J K Trading. Collectively, other agents sold cumin worth Rs 17.20 crore. The brothers issued cheques for payment, but the cheques were dishonoured due to insufficient funds. Subsequently, they shut down their office and went missing.

Atul Kamani, director of the marketing yard and president of the commission agents' association, confirmed that 146 agents have been defrauded. He said the scam has caused severe liquidity issues for many and disrupted normal business operations at the yard.

Kamani added that market activities would likely remain suspended into Monday or Tuesday unless police provide assurance of recovering the defrauded funds.

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Morbi constable duped in car purchase scam

Rajkot: A 28-year-old police constable in Morbi has lodged a formal complaint after being allegedly cheated of Rs 9.51 lakh in a car purchase scam. The complaint was filed at the Morbi City ‘A' Division police station, naming several bank account holders as accused under charges of criminal breach of trust and forgery, as per the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) and relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act.

According to the FIR, the complainant, Jaydeep Dabhi, along with two friends, had expressed interest in purchasing a four-wheeler in Dec 2024. Through a mutual acquaintance, they came into contact with a man identified as Mitrajasinh, who claimed he could arrange vehicles from showrooms at competitive rates.

Mitrajasinh reportedly offered to facilitate the purchase of a car for Rs 7.95 lakh. Acting on his instructions, Dabhi and his associates transferred a total of Rs 9.51 lakh to multiple bank accounts provided by him.

However, suspicions arose when the trio failed to receive the promised vehicle. Upon inquiry, they discovered that Mitrajasinh had issued forged documents, including a counterfeit payment receipt and fraudulent showroom papers bearing fake signatures and stamps, falsely suggesting a down payment had been made.

Following the revelation, Dabhi filed a case against Mitrajasinh and the holders of the bank accounts to which the funds had been transferred.