Bhubaneswar, May 14: Police today arrested a city-based builder-cum-businessman for duping investors of Rs 20 lakh on the pretext of providing them with houses.

Officers from Nayapalli police station arrested Satyabrata Dhir from his residence at IRC Village this morning based on complaints from several customers. Dhir is the director of Trishna Real Estate, and Sparsh Hospitals and Critical Care.

Police sources said that a complainant had booked a property in a housing project developed by Trishna Real Estate at Kantabada on the outskirts of the city. He had given Rs 8 lakh to the firm as advance payment for booking. When he found that the project had not made much headway, he asked the firm to return his money. He lodged a complaint with the cops yesterday after he did not get any refund despite repeated pleas.

"I had booked a property in a housing project and gave Rs 8 lakh as booking amount to Dhir's firm. I was supposed to get the apartment in 2014. But two years have passed since then and the project has not taken shape. I asked the firm to refund my money, but they turned a deaf ear to my queries. So, I filed the complaint," the complainant said.

Dhir had seven warrants against him at several police stations in Bhubaneswar and Balasore.

Police sources said most of the complaints were about duping investors of their hard-earned money on the pretext of providing them shelter. Dhir has reportedly duped investors of Rs 20 crore, said the police.

"Dhir was on the run for the past year. We were tipped off about his presence in the city last night, following which, a police team went to his residence this morning and arrested him," said deputy commissioner of police Satyabrata Bhoi.

"After the first complaint yesterday, eight more persons have lodged complaints claiming to have been duped by Dfhir's company till evening," he added.

His name was also linked in the state's multi-crore money laundering scam. The police and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had interrogated him in 2013 and 2014 respectively for his alleged links with the Artha Tatwa Group, one of the major names in the scam.

Dhir was among 22 persons Artha Tatwa Group chief Pradeep Sethy had named in June 2013. He had subsequently appeared before the Kharavela Nagar police and had claimed that Sethy owed him money.

In 2014, the CBI had also raided Dhir's residence and interrogated him for his alleged links with the group. Dhir had allegedly entered into a partnership with Sethy's firm for housing projects.