Mulund broker escapes alleged abductors at petrol pump; Bhandup police book four

A 54-year-old real estate broker from Mulund West says he got away from alleged kidnappers on October 30 by telling them he needed a washroom break at a petrol pump. Bhandup police have booked four men, including financier Adil Pavasakar, 45, under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Arms Act. The accused have not been tried, and the case rests for now on the broker's complaint.

According to the FIR, Haresh Bachubhai Badra borrowed ₹14 lakh from Pavasakar in the first week of May 2026 for business needs. The agreed repayment was ₹16 lakh, including ₹2 lakh interest, within a month. The money reached his account in two transfers, ₹10 lakh and ₹4 lakh. Badra says the repayment slipped after a separate investment with an acquaintance, Manish Loke, soured. Loke allegedly returned only ₹5 lakh of a promised ₹18 lakh.

Badra says he paid ₹2.30 lakh and asked for more time, but Pavasakar's associates began pressing him. The complaint says an associate, Sonubhai alias Sandy, 34, refused a ₹10 lakh cheque on June 25 and demanded cash. That evening he allegedly threatened Badra with a pistol at his Ghatkopar office, forced him and Loke into an Ertiga, and recorded a video of Badra admitting the debt.

The complaint says the payments kept coming. Badra's wife handed over ₹10 lakh in cash around midnight, against a signed receipt. Another ₹2 lakh was allegedly moved by bank transfer the next day, followed by ₹4.50 lakh in cash. After a second alleged abduction on August 11, a friend reportedly paid ₹3.50 lakh. By our tally of the amounts listed, that is roughly ₹22.3 lakh against the ₹16 lakh originally agreed. The figure is unverified, and investigators will have to test it.

The case shows how informal short-term credit can run alongside property dealings, with fast cash and thin paperwork. It also points to what helps when a dispute turns ugly. Bank transfers, a signed receipt and a video are all records that can help investigators reconstruct the sequence. Badra's complaint, and the police's decision to register it under the Arms Act as well as the BNS, gives that trail a formal footing.

For borrowers and brokers, the practical lesson is familiar. Document every loan and repayment, prefer traceable banking channels, and report threats early rather than negotiating under pressure. Police say further investigation is underway, and the court process will decide whether the allegations hold.

Source: Free Press Journal.

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