Hyderabad: ₹5 crore land scam unearthed in Rachakonda, 8 held

Hyderabad: Police have unearthed a ₹5 crore land scam in Rachakonda

Special Operations Team (SOT), Bhongir, and Keesara Police have arrested eight people who were forging documents to sell open plots.

Police said the gang’s method relied on identifying unfenced plots and impersonating owners through fabricated certificates, including fake death and legal heir documents.

The Modus Operandi

Investigators revealed that the gang targeted open plots in Rampally village and Ghatkesar, particularly those owned by elderly individuals who rarely visited their property.

Once such plots were identified, the accused obtained Encumbrance Certificates (ECs) and verified that no recent transactions had been recorded. They then forged sale deeds, death certificates, family certificates, and even passports to pose as rightful owners or their heirs.

In one case, the accused created fake death certificates for both the owner of a plot and his wife, followed by a fabricated heir certificate. A woman from the gang, Veramachineni Vanaja, then posed as the legal heir and executed a sale deed in favour of another accused.

In another instance, a fabricated Special Power of Attorney was prepared to suggest that the actual landowner had moved abroad. The property, police later found, belonged to a retired army personnel who had bought the plot with his pension savings in 1983.

Arrests and Seizures

Those arrested include Beegudem Aravind, a bike mechanic from Rampally; Sampangi Suresh and Eega Hari Prasad, both in real estate; Chekkala Somnath, a real estate dealer from Ramanthapur; Kotla Nagendra Prasad, a freelance loans broker; Mir Mohammed Hussain, a graphic designer and Rapido rider; Yamjala Shekar, a private employee from Ibrahimpatnam; and Vanaja, a resident of Vijayawada.

Four others identified as Amarender, Manik, Ahmed, and Musku Sunil Kumar remain absconding, along with six additional suspects.

From the arrested accused, police seized laptops, printers, a polymer machine, scanners, fake stamp pads, fabricated property documents, and chemicals used in forgery. A car and seven mobile phones were also recovered.

Past Criminal History

Several of the accused were already known to the police. Kotla Nagendra Prasad had been booked in multiple cases of cheating and forgery since 2009 at Meerpet and Panjagutta police stations. Somnath had three cases registered against him since 2016, while Hari Prasad was named in at least four cases in Keesara alone, including one as recent as this year.

Police officials said proposals to book the accused under the Preventive Detention (PD) Act are under consideration.

Police Statement

Issuing a warning to the public, Rachakonda Police said,

“The Rachakonda Police reiterates its commitment to eradicating such malpractices and warns the public against engaging in or facilitating the creation of fraudulent documents. Strict legal action will be taken against all individuals involved in such illegal activities.”

Officials also advised property buyers to verify documents before purchase. Citizens were urged to check stamp paper authenticity through sub-registrar offices, authorised banks, or the official website www.shcilestamp.com.