A shocking fraud story has shaken parts of the Marathi film circle. What began as a promising investment opportunity has now turned into a police case involving lakhs of rupees, a missing accused, and several shocked victims from the entertainment industry.
Marathi actress Varsha Usgaonkar is among several people who were allegedly cheated of around ₹47 lakh by a man who claimed to be both a builder and a film producer.
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According to Mumbai Police, the accused, identified as Avinash Jadhav, convinced multiple people connected to the Marathi entertainment world to invest money in a construction project. What sounded like a profitable deal eventually turned into a financial nightmare.
A case has now been registered against him at Shivaji Park Police Station, and an investigation is currently underway.
The deal that sounded too good to ignore
The complaint was filed by actress Mrunalini Subhash Jambhale, who is associated with Marathi theatre and films.
Police say Jambhale already knew Jadhav professionally. Taking advantage of that connection, he allegedly presented himself as a successful builder and film producer. He then introduced an investment opportunity in a construction project located in Dombivli.
The offer came with attractive promises. Jadhav reportedly assured the group that the project would bring high returns in a short period. He also claimed that the entire principal amount would be safely returned within a year.
For many, the proposal seemed reliable because of his confident claims about being involved in both real estate and film production.
Money transferred between 2019 and 2020
Between November 2019 and February 2020, Jambhale, Usgaonkar and three other people collectively invested ₹47 lakh in the project.
Police say the payments were made through cheques and online transfers, which made the investment appear legitimate.
At first, the accused seemed to maintain the illusion of trust. He returned ₹4.52 lakh to the investors, which reportedly reassured them that the project was real and the profits would follow.
But the payments soon stopped.
The sudden disappearance
According to the victims, communication with Jadhav became difficult soon after.
Calls went unanswered. Messages were ignored. Eventually, they discovered that he had changed both his mobile number and address.
With no responses coming from him, the victims decided to track him down themselves. They later travelled to Dombivli hoping to confront him and get clarity about the investment.
Instead of answers, they allegedly received threats.
“Do whatever you want,” accused reportedly said
When the victims finally met him, Jadhav allegedly refused to return the remaining money.
Police say he also threatened them and told them they could do whatever they wanted, but he would not repay the amount.
This confrontation made it clear to the victims that they had been cheated.
Following the incident, the victims filed a formal complaint at Shivaji Park Police Station.
Mumbai Police have registered a case against Jadhav under IPC Section 420 for cheating and Section 506 for criminal intimidation.
Investigators are now trying to locate the accused and determine whether more people were targeted using similar promises of high-return investments.