Pune: Pimpri Chinchwad crime branch on Saturday arrested a man (26) on the charge of duping five people with the promise of securing them jobs in PCMC’s water supply department.A crime branch team arrested Prateek Dhainje from Dhawade Vasti in Bhosari based on a tip-off. A case of cheating was registered against Dhainje on Sunday.Dhainje was previously arrested in 2025 for cheating at least 500 people of Rs 22.41 lakh on the pretext of providing them the Mhada apartments. After being released on bail, he again started cheating people, police said.Patil said his team received information on Saturday that a person with a criminal record had duped at least five people of Rs 1.14 lakh. “We found that the accused had given fake appointment letters mimicking those issued by a senior officer from the water supply department of the PCMC,” Patil said.He said when the candidates approached PCMC with the letters; the letters turned out to be fakes. They then asked the accused to return their money. He, however, refused to do so.“After taking him into custody, we handed Dhainje over to the Bhosari police for further investigation,” he said. Patil said so far, five people had come forward with their complaints. “The number may increase,” Patil said.
