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Punjab-origin man jailed for property fraud in UK
Jaspal Singh Juttla, an Indian-origin man, has been sentenced to three years' imprisonment for fraud after fleecing potential property buyers out of nearly £16,000 in London. Juttla, 64, impersonated a mortgage adviser and conned his clients, many of whom were of Indian heritage, into handing over money for services that were never carried out. The offences occurred between May 2019 and January 2021, and Juttla pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud by false representation and one count of carrying out a regulated activity when not authorised to do so. The police believe there may be other unreported victims.
London
An Indian-origin man has been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for fraud offences after he admitted to fleecing potential property buyers, many of them also of Indian-origin, out of nearly £16,000 ( ₹16.4 lakh), Scotland Yard said.
Jaspal Singh Juttla, 64, was sentenced at Isleworth crown court in London on Thursday on four counts of fraud by false representation and one count of carrying on a regulated activity when not authorised to do so.
The offences occurred between May 2019 and January 2021 and Juttla pleaded guilty to the offences at an earlier hearing in August last year at Uxbridge magistrates’ court, the metropolitan police said in a statement.
The offences relate to four victims, where property buyers were conned into handing over approximately £15,790 pounds to Juttla impersonating as a mortgage adviser.
“Jaspal Singh Juttla is a persistent fraud who has exploited people in his own community, using their hard-earned money to fund his lifestyle,” said detective constable Anita Sharma, financial investigator in the central specialist crime unit of the Met Police.
The financial investigators from the Met’s economic crime team believe that there are other victims that have been scammed by the ruse and are yet to come forward.
Juttla claimed to be a mortgage adviser and offered to assist victims with property purchases. He would meet his clients – who were predominantly of Indian heritage and some spoke little to no English – at various locations in London, including Southall and Hayes in west London. Some victims were targeted at open house viewings.
The Met Police investigation found that Juttla often promised victims to fill out their applications, arrange a survey for them and put them in touch with a solicitor that would assist with a house purchase. Once the victims paid the fee requested by Juttla, he would ask for more money to cover other services that he had made up. None of these services were carried out and all arrangements failed to surface for the property buyers.
