The Charkop police have arrested a woman accused in a fraud case involving a Kandivali-based overseas education consultancy that allegedly duped students by promising admissions to foreign universities. The arrested accused, identified as Shraddha Vitthal Gadekar, had reportedly been on the run for the last five months before being traced and taken into custody. Police said the main accused in the case, Stella Rakesh Mehta and Rakesh Mehta, are still absconding and efforts are underway to locate them. Investigators further revealed that multiple complaints of a similar nature have been registered against the couple at police stations in Mumbai as well as neighbouring Thane district over alleged education-related cheating.
According to the complaint lodged by Kandivali resident Dr Nehal Joshi, he had approached the consultancy firm, Career and Options, seeking assistance for securing admission for his daughter to a Master of Trade and Logistics programme at Wittenborg University in the Netherlands. The accused allegedly convinced the family that the admission process had been completed successfully and instructed them to deposit the required fees into the consultancy’s bank account. Acting on their assurance, Joshi reportedly obtained an education loan and transferred more than ₹10 lakh. Later, the university informed the family that no payment had been received from the consultancy, exposing the alleged fraud.
After the family realised they had been cheated, they approached the police and filed a complaint against the consultancy and its operators. During the investigation, police discovered that the accused had allegedly closed their office premises and disappeared without informing clients.Following sustained efforts, the Charkop police managed to arrest Gadekar, who was later produced before a Borivali court. Officials said the investigation is continuing and teams have been formed to trace the remaining accused, Stella and Rakesh Mehta. Police are also examining whether more students and parents were targeted through the same modus operandi by the consultancy firm.