Most wanted fraudster arrested again

After evading arrest for quite some time, career fraudster Nilim Dutta was finally arrested from his rented apartment in Joypur locality of Kharghuli under Latasil Police Station on 13th February last. Dutta was wanted in connection with a case registered with Jalukbari Police Station for allegedly posting objectionable remarks against Gauhati University after the recent incident of alleged molestation of a female student by two male students of Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IITG.) Interestingly, Nilim, according to Latasil police, is a most wanted fraudster and even Latasil police was hunting for him since quite a while. According to the police, he used to present himself as a director of National Investigation Agency (NIA). G Plus looks into the entire incident especially in light of the fact that he was also arrested earlier by Dispur police. The allegations   According to Prasenjit Chakraborty, the owner of a flat (4B, 4th floor, River Heights Garden Apartment, Joypur, Kharguli) in April 2016, Nilim Dutta had approached him for taking his flat on rent introducing himself as an officer of National Investigation Agency (NIA). The rent was negotiated at Rs 23,000 per month and subsequently a tenancy agreement between Prasenjit and Nilim’s father, Dulal Chandra Dutta was signed on 30th April 2016. According to Prasenjit, the accused Nilim Dutta said he could not be a signatory because of restrictions from NIA. Prasenjit believed him and accepted an amount of Rs 46,000 as rent for two months. All was well till August 2016 when the owner of the flat received information that suspicious people visited the flat at unearthly hours and sometimes, people used to come asking for Nilim Dutta, his father Dulal Chandra Dutta and sister, Smita Dutta. According to the owner, when confronted, Nilim casually brushed aside the issue saying that since he is an NIA officer his sources did not meet him at office and rather met him at home sometimes.    The owner said that Nilim gradually became irregular in paying the rent. When confronted again, Nilim said that being the Director of Strategic Research and Analysis Organisation, working covertly with the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) under the ministry of defence, he was busy with the rehabilitation of the riot victims of Kokrajhar and so, his salary was not being released. Nilim also showed of a key ring of NIA which was allegedly gifted to him by the NIA as a token of appreciation for his work in Kokrajhar, Assam. Prasenjit was again convinced about his credentials and did not pursue the matter further thinking it might disturb Nilim. Later, in November when Prasenjit again asked him the four month’s rent that was due, Nilim again tactfully evaded the matter and asked the owner to wait till December. In December the owner again asked for the rent but Nilim did not pay it. The frustrated owner thereafter disconnected the electricity thinking the discomfort might make his tenant pay the rent. On 19th December, Dulal Chandra Dutta lodged an FIR with Latasil police stating that the owner had disconnected the electricity (case number -365/2016 under section 406/420/387 and 506 of IPC. The owner lodged a counter FIR but the FIR was not registered then. The Latasil police, talking to G Plus, said that at that time the police was investigating the first FIR and interestingly, Nilim Dutta had then called the Latasil OC identifying himself as the director of NIA and requesting help as his old father was facing problems without electricity. The OC believed Nilim for a while but further investigations revealed that Nilim was a fraud. It was then that the owner realised that he was dealing with a fraudster of the highest calibre and he complained to the commissioner of police. A case was registered in Latasil Police station (case number – 34/17 under section 120(b)/406/420/34 of IPC) on 10th February and another case was registered in Jalukbari police station against Nilim for allegedly posting objectionable remarks against Gauhati University on social media. The arrest    The police, since then, made a number of attempts to arrest Nilim but he kept evading arrest. Finally on 13th February he was arrested by a joint team of Jalukbari and Latasil police from his apartment. The Latasil police sources, talking to G Plus, said that the arrest was not an easy task. Apparently, when the police team reached the apartment, Nilim Dutta started pelting stones from the fourth floor apartment injuring two police personnel in the process. A separate case in this connection has been registered in Latasil Police station. The police then formed two teams - one went up to his apartment and the other waited below the apartment. Reaching the apartment, they failed to find Nilim there. Having searched the entire flat, some police personnel also went up to the terrace. There was no sign of him there either. The police team below had to throw searchlights on the entire building and the light picked up Nilim Dutta holed up behind a railing constructed on the terrace. The police thereafter somehow managed to grab him out and arrest him.           Other crimes and his modus operandi   In 2013, Nilim was arrested after two different FIRs were lodged with the police - one by an individual and the other by a hotel - both complaining that he had duped them. Even on that occasion, police had said that he would have managed a clean escape had he not hurt himself in both his legs while jumping out from the first-floor balcony when the police raided the flat which he had taken on rent. According to Latasil police there are five cases of fraud against Nilim Dutta in Dispur police. The manager of Hotel Nivedan had filed an FIR against Nilim Dutta for duping them. Arun Baruah, Rajiv Varma (proprieter of Delhi Cloth House, Fancy Bazar) and Amy Yusuf had also filed complaints against Dutta for duping them. Talking about his modus operandi, the Latasil police said that Nilim Dutta did not have any other source of income and he used to only dupe people by posing as a big shot or a high-level officer. He used to stay in expensive hotels posing as an NIA officer or a RAW agent and never used to pay them. The police said that Nilim used to hire expensive cars from transport agencies on contract basis for a few months and thereafter keep postponing the date of payment. Many of his cheques also bounced. According to police, Nilim used to promise jobs to unemployed youths of wealthy families and dupe them off money. He used to rent houses and initially was prompt in paying the rent. But after a few months he would turn defaulter and dared the house owners to go to court. The police also said that Nilim originally hails from Jorhat and had once been caught there for theft. His head was shaved off and since then he has been sporting the bald look. According to police, Nilim has an extraordinary personality and is a convincing conversationalist which was basically his weapon to dupe people. Police added that Nilim is very intelligent and used to even write for many local and national publications earlier.    As the Gauhati University Vice Chancellor had told G Plus, Nilim had claimed that he was the local guardian of the alleged IIT molestation case victim and Nilim had taken custody of the girl after the incident. The Latasil police said that the victim was present at his apartment at the time of his arrest. After the alleged molestation incident Nilim had made many unsavoury comments against Gauhati University as a result of which a case was registered in Jalukbari police station. Investigation is going on. Nilim meanwhile has been sent to judicial custody but police had tried to get his custody for 7 days to elicit some more information about other fraudulent activities carried out by him. Prasenjit has also informed the NIA officials about the incident.   •  Prasenjit Chakraborty rented out his flat in Kharguli to Nilim Dutta in April 2016 •  Nilim had introduced himself as a NIA officer and made his father sign the tenancy agreement citing NIA restrictions  •  From August he started defaulting on rent payments •  In December the owner disconnected the electricity •  Nilim’s father filed an FIR with Latasil police against this action; Nilim had called the OC posing as NIA Director and requested help for his father •  Police later realized that he was a fraud •  The owner of the apartment also understood the matter and filed a case with Latasil police •  Meanwhile Nilim had posted objectionable remarks against Gauhati University for which a case was registered in Jalukbari police station •  Nilim had taken custody of the victim of the alleged IIT molestation case and the girl had filed the FIR along with him •  A joint team of Latasil Police and Jalukbari police arrested Nilim on 13th February  •  Nilim is in judicial custody now and according to police he is a most wanted fraudster    Stay updated on the go with GPlus News. 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