Pune: Fake PMRDA Officer Promises Lottery Homes, Cheats Over 15 People in Pimpri-Chinchwad
Pimpri Chinchwad, 28th January 2025: Over 15 people have been duped of millions of rupees by a woman who promised to provide them with affordable homes allotted through the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority’s (PMRDA) lottery system.
According to police sources, 17 victims have filed complaints at the Pimpri Police Station, reporting a total fraud amounting to Rs 46.29 lakh. Along with the main accused, four others have also been named in the case.
The fraud occurred between July 2024 and June 2025. Police said the woman posed as a PMRDA employee and falsely claimed she could secure housing under the PMRDA’s affordable housing scheme in exchange for an advance payment. She assured the victims that their names would appear on the lottery list and provided them with forged government documents and identification to build trust.
So far, 17 people have approached the police, but officials believe there may be more victims.
A case has been registered against the woman and four of her family members under charges of cheating, forgery, using forged documents as genuine, and criminal conspiracy.
A senior official from the Pimpri-Chinchwad Police told Punekar News that a similar case was registered against the woman around a year ago. In that case too, she duped people by promising homes under the PMRDA scheme and posed as an employee.
Assistant Police Inspector Anil Lohar from Pimpri Police Station is investigating the case.
