Police say they have made a breakthrough in the reported multimillion dollar property scheme in St Catherine that saw several unsuspecting members of the public paying out millions of dollars in a bid to acquire land but were left holding the bag as several questions were raised about the ownership of properties.
Loop News last year launched a probe into the illegal development after several of the victims raised an alarm.
Investigators are reporting that they have apprehended a female believed to be one of the masterminds behind the underground operation.
She has since been charged with obtaining money by false pretense and fraudulent conversion in relation to separate incidents that occurred between March and September of 2023 in Spanish Town, St Catherine.
She has been identified as 35-year-old Shanna-Marie Maragh of Kavita Crescent, Spanish Town, St Catherine.
The Spanish Town police reported that in the first incident, Maragh, posing as a secretary for a construction company, collected $1,900,000 from a businessman to secure a property for him between Thursday, March 7, and Thursday, April 13, 2023.
The second incident, which is of a similar nature, occurred between March and September, last year.
She reportedly sold properties in the sum of $1,500,000 and $2,500,000 to two men.
After repeated attempts to secure the title for the lots, and the requests for refunds were unsuccessful, a report of the failed transactions was made to the police.
Maragh was taken into custody following an investigation and was charged after a question-and-answer session.
