03-07-2025
Franchise trap: Senior citizen scammed in 38L pizza deal gone wrong
Surat: What started as a dream venture for a 61-year-old retiree hoping to run a reputed pizza franchise turned into a financial nightmare. In a tale that mixes ambition, deception, and betrayal, a mother-daughter duo and their associate allegedly lured the senior citizen into a well-orchestrated franchise scam — swindling him out of Rs 38 lakh under the guise of selling him the Katargam outlet of an Ahmedabad-based pizza brand.
The victim not only lost his money but also control of the business he was promised ownership of.
According to Singanpor police, the accused — Binita Bhavsar, her daughter Priyansi Mistry, and Dhruv Mistry — allegedly duped Vipul Vachhani, 61, a resident of Adajan, by convincing him to purchase the Katargam franchise for Rs 40 lakh. The trio claimed they were planning to settle abroad and wished to sell the outlet. They have been booked on charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy.
Vachhani found the opportunity through Bobby Thakkar, an administrator with the pizza company. Thakkar introduced him to the accused, who invited him to visit their outlet in Zircon Complex, Katargam. They encouraged him to spend two months at the shop to gain experience before finalising the deal.
After gaining his trust, the accused agreed to sell the franchise for Rs 40 lakh. Vachhani paid Rs 20 lakh upfront and was promised legal transfer of ownership later.
However, after he paid another Rs 10 lakh over time, the ownership remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, customer payments made online were credited to Binita's account. In Jan 2024, Vachhani requested repayment of Rs 2.32 lakh collected online and asked the accused to clear pending GST dues of Rs 7 lakh and formally hand over the business. But the trio kept delaying with various excuses.
In Feb and March, online customer payments totaling Rs 6.10 lakh were also withheld.
Realising he was being misled, Vachhani approached Thakkar, who gave him the accused's contact details and advised him to shut the shop temporarily for 'renovation'. Vachhani complied and returned the keys to the property owner.
The accused later collected the keys and quietly transferred the franchise to the owner of the Adajan outlet, cutting Vachhani out of the deal completely.
While Binita and Priyansi are currently based in Pune, Dhruv resides in Navsari. Police have initiated a probe and formed teams to trace and apprehend the accused.
