Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing questioned actor Dino Morea on October 2 in connection with its investigation into the alleged ₹65.54 crore Mithi River desilting scam involving civic contracts, inflated equipment rentals and suspected fraudulent billing.
Morea reached the EOW office in south Mumbai at around 1.30 pm and joined the investigation.
A senior EOW officer said he had been called to verify certain facts that emerged during the probe. Police have so far arrested three people in the wider case.
Morea has not been named as an accused merely because he was questioned, and investigators have not publicly alleged that he participated in the underlying desilting fraud.
FCRF Launches CP-FRM to Build India’s Next Generation of Fraud Risk Professionals
Transactions and Contacts With Accused Under Scrutiny
Morea had earlier been questioned twice in May 2025 along with his brother, Santino Rocco Morea.
Investigators had found financial transactions and communication links involving people connected with the case.
Police have specifically examined links with Ketan Kadam, one of the principal accused.
Kadam owns Woder India LLP and has also been associated with Virgo Specialties.
Morea’s family member Santino Rocco Morea and Kadam’s wife, Punita Kadam, were directors in UBO Ridez Private Limited, a company known for operating Victorian-style electric carriages in Mumbai.
Investigators have been examining financial transactions involving UBO Ridez and companies connected with Kadam.
The latest questioning is part of that continuing effort to establish whether transactions or communications identified during the investigation have any connection with the alleged desilting irregularities.
₹65.54 Crore Loss Alleged in Mithi River Contracts
The broader case concerns contracts awarded by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for desilting Mumbai’s Mithi River.
The river is an important part of Mumbai’s flood-control infrastructure, making regular removal of accumulated silt crucial before the monsoon.
Mumbai Police allege that contractors, intermediaries and some civic officials conspired to manipulate the tendering and execution of desilting work.
The EOW estimates that the alleged irregularities caused a loss of ₹65.54 crore to the BMC.
Thirteen people were initially booked in the case, including contractors and individuals allegedly involved in supplying specialised machinery.
Equipment Allegedly Rented at Inflated Rates
One major part of the investigation concerns specialised machinery used for removing silt from the river.
According to the EOW, some BMC officials travelled to Kochi in October 2020 to examine equipment supplied by Matprop Technical Services Pvt. Ltd.
Investigators allege that the specifications subsequently included in civic tenders closely matched Matprop’s machinery.
Contractors seeking the required equipment were then allegedly directed to Ketan Kadam and Jayesh Joshi.
Police claim that the machinery was rented to contractors at inflated rates.
The EOW is examining whether this arrangement artificially increased project costs and whether tender specifications were structured to benefit particular suppliers or intermediaries.
Kadam and Joshi were arrested in May 2025.
The investigation is also examining how Woder India LLP obtained civic work and whether its contracts were connected with the alleged irregularities.
Contractor Accused of Using Fake Photos and Videos
The investigation later expanded to the actual desilting work claimed by contractors.
In August 2025, police arrested contractor Shersingh Rathod, whose Maideep Enterprises had received Mithi River desilting work.
Investigators accused Rathod of submitting photographs and videos that purportedly showed silt being transported away from the river.
Police later alleged that some of the trucks shown in the records were actually carrying construction debris rather than material removed from the Mithi River.
Maideep Enterprises allegedly submitted bills worth ₹29.63 crore, which were subsequently cleared by BMC officials.
A later EOW chargesheet alleged that the company had fraudulently benefited from payments connected with the desilting contracts.
Landowners Allegedly Denied Signing Dumping Agreements
Investigators also examined documents purportedly showing where the removed silt had been dumped.
Rathod allegedly produced agreements with landowners in Bhiwandi and Panvel to demonstrate that material removed from the river had been transported to authorised dumping locations.
Police said some of the landowners denied knowing Rathod and claimed their signatures had been forged.
In one striking instance, an agreement purportedly signed in April 2021 carried the name of a landowner who investigators said had died three months earlier.
The alleged forged agreements became another part of the EOW’s case that supporting documents submitted for the contracts may have been fabricated.
However, a sessions court later granted Rathod bail and observed that material before it prima facie indicated that silt and debris had in fact been removed from the river.
That judicial observation is important because it shows that some of the prosecution’s allegations remain contested and will ultimately have to be tested at trial.
Conflicting Reports Over Dino Morea’s Status
Confusion emerged on October 2 after several media outlets reported that Morea had been arrested following questioning.
Some of those reports relied on an initial Mid-Day report claiming that the actor had been taken into custody.
Mid-Day later published an update stating that Morea denied being detained or arrested.
The Indian Express also reported later in the day that Morea had appeared before the EOW and was questioned to verify facts emerging from the probe.
There has been no authoritative police announcement confirming his arrest.
For that reason, his status should currently be described as someone questioned in connection with the investigation.
EOW Continues to Examine Financial and Contract Trail
The EOW investigation remains focused on how the desilting contracts were awarded, whether machinery rentals were artificially inflated, whether work records were manipulated and how money moved between contractors and associated entities.
Investigators are also examining financial transactions involving people whose names surfaced during the probe.
Morea’s questioning forms one part of this wider investigation.
Police have not publicly disclosed what specific explanation they sought from him during the latest session or whether further questioning will be required.
The ₹65.54 crore loss remains an allegation by investigators and has not been established through a final court judgment.
What this means for you
The case shows how public infrastructure fraud can involve more than inflated bills. Investigators are examining tender specifications, equipment rentals, forged documents, digital photographs and financial transactions together to establish whether public money was improperly diverted.
Follow for daily updates on cybercrime, corporate fraud, DFIR, hacking, investigations, and digital forensics
