A file photo of buildings in Bengaluru. The CID arrested a man who grabbed over 100 properties in and around the city since 2017, by forging documents to claim ownership.ย
CID officials on Monday arrested a gangster under the Karnataka Control of Organised Crime Act on the charge of being involved in over 100 land-grabbing cases.
The accused, identified as John Moses, 49, allegedly runs a crime syndicate and grabbed over 100 properties in and around the city since 2017, by forging documents to claim ownership. The accused would start disputes and even file cases in court, before striking a deal with the actual owners, said the CID officials.
In one such case, the High Court took cognisance and directed the Registrar to file a complaint with the jurisdictional Halasuru Gate police in 2020.
Considering the magnitude of the case, it was handed over to the CID, which formed a special team, headed by Deputy Superintendent of Police Puneeth Kumar R..
A probe revealed that Moses had allegedly grabbed 100 such properties and cases were booked subsequently. Investigation into 51 of 100 cases have been completed and the charge sheet filed, the CID officials said.
The accused, who worked as a real estate broker in the Bengaluru East division, had some knowledge about property documents.
Explaining his modus operandi, a senior police officer said that the accused forged land documents and made one of his gang members to pose as the owner. Moses would then file a civil dispute case with the forged documents seeking eviction.
In some cases, the accused got the eviction order from the court authenticating his ownership and he would use that to evict tenants from the property. He would later clinch a deal with the actual owners extorting crores from them, said the officer.
The CID officials said that many of his associates, including a few advocates, have already been arrested and are currently on bail. Now the CID officials are contemplating booking them under the KCOCA too.
