The group that allegedly beat up two businessmen from Rajasthan in Behala for selling fake gold to them, resulting in the death of one of the traders, had been on the lookout for the pair for months, police said.

The group managed to trace Mahender Singh and his son-in-law Deepak Singh on Saturday and assaulted them, inflicting fatal injuries on Mahender, the cops said.

Mahender, 55, and Deepak, 33, were found unconscious on NG Saha Road early on Sunday.

Mahender was declared dead at Vidyasagar State General Hospital, while Deepak was admitted to the hospital with multiple injuries.

The spot is a five-minute walk from Biren Roy Road West, a busy stretch connecting Behala Chowrasta and Maheshtala on the city’s southwestern fringes. It falls under the jurisdiction of Parnasree police station.

Eight men have been arrested.

Interrogation of the suspects and an initial probe suggested that Mahender and Deepak were allegedly running a racket of duping jewellers across states, police sources said.

“They were in the habit of mortgaging fake jewellery and taking loans. Initially, they would mortgage genuine gold to win the confidence of a jeweller. Eventually, they would start mortgaging fake jewellery to take money against it,” an officer of Parnasree police station said on Monday.

A senior officer at Lalbazar said: “Even if the men cheated the jewellers, no one had the right to kill them or take the law into their own hands. They should have reported it to the police”.

According to sources, the duo used to visit Calcutta frequently to take gold loans.

“The accused used to change their address even while staying in Calcutta, making it difficult for the jewellers to trace them after they realised the fraud,” a police officer said.

However, the jewellers did not lodge any complaint against the Singhs.

According to the officer, out of the eight persons who have been arrested for the alleged lynching, the duo had allegedly duped one of them — Chandan Ghosh — to the tune of ₹10 lakh over the past three years — between 2022 and 2025.

On Monday, the family members of Ghosh, a local jeweller, told The Telegraph: “The duo had introduced themselves as businessmen. They deposited gold as security and borrowed money. This happened several times.”

“Initially, they returned the money in time and earned our trust. Then, around one and a half years ago, they borrowed a large amount by depositing what resembled an expensive necklace. My husband did not suspect foul play and gave them the money. Later, he found out that the ornament had fake gold,” said Shampa Ghosh, wife of Chandan.

The neighbourhood where Deepak and Mahender were found gets deserted after dark.

“After dark, the area becomes a den for drinking and gambling. Brawls are common,” said a man who works at a small factory that makes iron gates on NG Saha Road, around 100m from the spot where Deepak and Mahender were found in the early on Sunday.

Investigators did not find blood around Mahender’s body, which raised the suspicion that he was killed somewhere else. Further investigation, corroborated by Deepak’s statement, led the cops to the scene of the crime — a few yards from where the body was found.

One of the arrested men, Biswajit Biswas, supplies construction material and has developed a couple of standalone apartments, residents said.

Deepak and Mahender had allegedly been called to a construction site linked to Biswas before they were assaulted, the police have said.

The arrested men have been charged with murder and attempted murder. They are in police remand.