New Delhi, Sep 24 — The Anti-Auto Theft Squad (AATS) of Dwarka District Police has arrested a 67-year-old property dealer who was wanted in connection with a case involving the cheating of a senior citizen of nearly Rs 1.75 crore through forged property documents.
The accused, identified as Brahm Swaroop Bhardwaj, was carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 and had allegedly been absconding for nearly a year. He was traced to Sonipat, Haryana, following seven days of technical and manual surveillance.
According to the police, the complainant, a senior citizen and retired government servant who had served as a pharmacist at Tihar Jail, was allegedly duped during 2024-25 on the pretext of the sale and purchase of multiple plots of land.
Police said the accused and his male and female associates allegedly used forged property documents to carry out fraudulent property transactions and target the victim’s pension corpus of around Rs 1.75 crore.
An FIR (No. 730/25) was registered at Ranhola police station in connection with the case. The accused absconded after the registration of the case, following which Non-Bailable Warrants (NBWs) were obtained against him.
According to the police, a reward of Rs 50,000 was declared on five wanted accused in the case vide an order dated September 3.
As part of a special drive against absconding and proclaimed or rewarded criminals, AATS Dwarka was tasked with identifying, tracking and apprehending such accused persons.
A dedicated team comprising Sub-Inspector Jitender, Head Constables Sonu (No. 1684/DW) and Manoj (No. 1820/DW), and Woman Head Constable Mamta (No. 2813/DW), was constituted to trace the accused.
The operation was led by Inspector Manish Yadav, AATS Dwarka, under the close supervision of ACP/Operations Subhash Malik and the overall guidance of DCP Dwarka District Kushal Pal Singh.
Police said the accused was placed under focussed surveillance after his details were taken up for verification. The team developed leads through technical inputs and field verification and eventually traced him to Sonipat.
The accused was apprehended on September 13, bringing his nearly year-long period of absconding to an end.
Police described Bhardwaj as an alleged 'Natwarlal-style' property conman who reportedly operated with the help of male and female relatives or associates. His alleged modus operandi involved property transactions, forged documents and targeting the victim’s pension savings.
Following his arrest, he was produced before the court. Police said further investigation into the case and the role of other associates is underway.