Man facing 108 cases, on the run for 9 years, arrested from Uttarakhand: Police

Police arrested Neeraj Arora (representative) of Shri Nagar Garhwal in Poudi district

Chandigarh:

Punjab Police on Tuesday said it has arrested a man from Uttarakhand who faces more than 100 cases in Punjab and has been on the run for nine years.

Neeraj Thathai alias Neeraj Arora was accused of collecting money from people instead of providing them residential or commercial land.

Police said Neeraj Arora has been on the run for the past 8-9 years and has been declared a criminal.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Gursharan Singh Sandhu said 108 FIRs have been registered in 21 districts against the accused for allegedly defrauding people of the state by promising money or conspiracy.

Of the total 108 FIRs, 47 were registered in Fazilka, eight in Ferozepur, six each in Patiala and Fatehgarh Sahib, five each in Rupnagar, Mohali and SAS Nagar; and one each in Faridkot, Sri Muktsar Sahib and Jalandhar Board 4 people.

Neeraj Arora, who was arrested by Fazilka police in February 2016 and is now out on bail, was declared a criminal in February 2017, police said.

The Enforcement Directorate has also registered a case and attached his properties, while a number of writ petitions against him are pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, police said.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Ranjit Singh Dhillon said the accused used fake identity cards to evade arrest.

“The accused owns over 1,200 acres of land and 200 residential apartments in Punjab and Madhya Pradesh worth over Rs 1,000 crore,” he said.

Police arrested Neeraj Arora of Shri Nagar Garhwal from Poudi district. Police also seized a luxury car, mobile phones and fake documents from him.

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