City realtor held by EOW for land fraud

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch on Tuesday arrested Managing Director of Z-Infra Construction Private Limited Prasanna Kumar Patra on the charge of land fraud.

Patra was forwarded to the OPID Court in Cuttack later in the day.

EOW officials arrested Patra for duping more than 300 potential buyers in the guise of providing them plots at cheap prices with all amenities on the city outskirts.

Investigation by the EOW sleuths revealed that Patra had collected about Rs 12 crore from the potential buyers between 2010 and 2013 to provide them house plots at Kansapada near the IIT-Bhubaneswar in Jatni. Even after receiving the payment, the accused did not acquire the lands meant for selling to the investors.

On being pressurised by the investors, Patra registered land in the names of a few buyers though the plots were without approach roads and other amenities promised by him earlier.

He had also misappropriated the money of some investors without registering lands in their favour. After collection of the money, the plots were never handed over to the aspirant buyers nor was their money refunded.

The EOW had registered a case in this regard in July this year under the Odisha Protection of Interests of Depositors (OPID) Act after a complaint was filed by a duped customer, Manoranjan Mishra.