MUMBAI: Police have booked a director of an leisure firm and two of his associates on fees of duping a journalist of ₹1.40 crore. Interestingly, the accused, Saurabh Pandey, is at the moment in jail in a ₹1.33 crore dishonest case involving an NRI lady from the US.

Pandey, a resident of Lucknow, is a director at Brainstorm Entertainment LLP. In January 2016, he had instructed the complainant, 65, that he was organising an Indian Film Academics Award in America and the latter might put money into the venture and earn 20% revenue.

Accordingly, the journalist, who resides in Andheri’s Four Bungalows, invested ₹1.40 crore. But neither did he get the promised revenue nor the principal quantity, the criticism stated, including when he lately came upon that Pandey had equally duped many others, he approached the Amboli police.

On Friday, a case towards Pandey and his associates Manjusha Pandey and Vandana Krishna was registered beneath part 406 (felony breach of belief), 420 (dishonest), and 34 (widespread intention) of Indian Penal Code.

“Our investigation has revealed that the accused has cheated many others, including some politicians in other places of the country. This is our second case against Pandey,” Bandopant Bansode, senior inspector at Amboli police station, stated.

A police officer stated Pandey was arrested in November 2022 for allegedly duping the NRI lady after he had befriended her on a courting website and persuaded her to take a position cash in an organization he was establishing for Indian Premier League. He had promised her 15% annual returns.

Pandey even threatened to hurt her if she requested for her cash and allegedly molested her at a lodge, the officer stated.