A man has been found guilty of multiple charges of obtaining property through deception at the Ba Magistrate’s Court, particularly for his fraudulent activities involving land he did not own. Asif Khan, the owner of AK Development, was convicted on 13 counts following a trial held in his absence.
Khan deceived individuals by advertising land for sale at Wailailai in Ba on social media platforms like Facebook and through billboards, despite not having ownership rights. Several victims were lured into making payments for deposits under the impression that the land was genuinely available for purchase. Witness Shalvin Vikash Chand testified that he paid $5,000 in October 2018, while another buyer, Sheik Imtiaz Azam, recounted paying $7,000 for a property he visited with Khan. Azam indicated he sought a refund after not receiving the land title within a year, only to later discover that the property was registered under an estate’s name and categorized as agricultural land with no rezoning or subdivision requests filed.
The court proceedings revealed that Khan was initially charged in March 2022. In December 2023, he was granted permission to travel to New Zealand but was later found to have left Fiji for Melbourne, Australia, in January 2024, after failing to return.
This case underscores the importance of due diligence in property transactions and serves as a reminder to potential buyers to verify ownership and zoning status before making significant investments. The hope is that legal consequences for deceptive practices will deter similar fraudulent activities in the future, promoting trust within the property market.
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