Rajat Verma, of Franklin Square, charged with scamming tenants, landlords in rental scheme, DA says

A Long Island man is facing a 40-count indictment alleging he scammed both landlords and prospective tenants out of $61,625, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced.

Rajat Verma, 35, of Franklin Square, faces grand larceny, identity theft and scheme to defraud charges after he allegedly rented apartments by providing forged checks to landlords and, in turn, rented out the same properties to at least 15 unsuspecting tenants, Katz said. The properties included seven in Queens and one in Brooklyn.

"As alleged, this defendant took advantage of those seeking housing by purporting to be a real estate agent and renting out properties that did not belong to him," Katz said in a statement. "The unsuspecting tenants gave him payments and signed phony leases that left them without their money and housing."

From Sept. 23, 2022, to Nov. 24, 2023, Verma posed as a tenant seeking apartments in Queens from small landlords in Glen Oaks, Rego Park, College Point, Ozone Park, Hollis and Maspeth, along with one in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, Katz said in a news release. 

According to the indictment handed up last week, Verma allegedly gave the landlords forged checks and then received keys to the properties. As landlords waited for the checks to clear, Verma advertised the properties for rent online using different aliases, phone numbers and email addresses, Katz said.

Prospective tenants provided Verma with payments that often amounted to thousands of dollars, the release said.

According to an investigation, some tenants received keys to their new homes only to learn the keys did not work. In one instance, a tenant arrived at an apartment to find another family, also allegedly duped by Verma, living there, the release said.

Verma is charged with various counts of scheme to defraud, criminal possession of a forged instrument, criminal possession of stolen property, grand larceny and identity theft.

He is due back in Queens Supreme Criminal Court on Nov. 23. If convicted, he faces up to 7 years in prison.

Joseph Grasso, Verma's defense attorney, said in a statement on Wednesday: "Verma is a devoted husband, father, and family man who resides with and helps care for his elderly parents. He takes these allegations extremely seriously and is committed to defending himself against them. We intend to vigorously fight these charges and do everything in our power to clear his name."

Verma — using the aliases Rajvinder Kaur, Rajib "Raj" Sharma, Sammy Miah, Berihai "Barry" Padmanabhan, Barry Padmanabhan, Barry Padman, Bobby Gupta, Dave Mair, Ahmed Abbas, Samir and Abbas Mithun — allegedly defrauded at least 15 people during the yearlong scam, Katz said.

Anyone who suspects they may have been taken advantage of by Verma is urged to contact the Consumer Fraud Helpline at 718-286-6673.