Wanted builder, on the run for a year, arrested for fraud in Noida

According to the police, Amit Somal, the director of Premia Projects Private Limited, had been on the run since 2017 after multiple cases were registered against him.

In a joint effort by the Noida crime branch and the Sector 20 police, the director of a firm was arrested on Monday night for allegedly swindling money from buyers in exchange of plots that were never delivered.

According to the police, Amit Somal, the director of Premia Projects Private Limited, had been on the run since 2017 after multiple cases were registered against him.

“There were three cases registered against him in Sector 20 police station. He had been on the run since 2017. The investigation of the matter had been handed to the crime branch only last week. We are hopeful that after his arrest, more people will come forward and file complaints,” Ashok Kumar Singh, superintendent of police (crime), said.

Singh said the accused is a resident of Dwarka, Delhi, and had defrauded hundreds of people. He also said Somal’s bank accounts have been seized.

However, the police are doubtful about the recovery of the money buyers have lost. According to the victims of this fraud, they had paid the builder varying amounts depending on the size of the ‘plots’.

“I was introduced to the project in 2014 by a friend’s son. We paid nearly ₹17 lakh in instalments. After a while, when we neither received the plot nor our money, the builder stopped responding to our calls or emails, following which we registered a complaint at the Sector 20 police station,” 77-year-old OP Bajpai, a resident of Beta 1, Greater Noida, said.

The police said that even though they knew Somal’s residential address, he always managed to elude them.

“Last night, we received information that Somal would be near Atta Chowk. He was arrested late in the evening based on the tip-off,” Manoj Kumar Pant, station house officer, Sector 20 police station, said.

Despite multiple efforts, the spokesperson of the developer could not be reached for comment.