Rajat Verma

Introduction

Rajat Verma, 35, of Franklin Square on Long Island, was arraigned on October 29, 2026, on a 40-count indictment charging him with a rental fraud scheme that targeted at least 15 would-be tenants across Queens and Brooklyn and took in a combined $61,625 in security deposits and other rental payments, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors allege Verma posed as a real estate agent and rented out apartments he did not own, sometimes promising the same property to multiple renters — leaving victims with bogus leases, keys that would not open front doors and, in one case, an apartment already occupied by another family he had allegedly conned. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

Background Information

According to the charges and investigation, from September 23, 2022, through November 24, 2023, Verma posed as a tenant seeking apartments from small landlords in Glen Oaks, Rego Park, College Point, Ozone Park, Hollis, Maspeth and Brooklyn, allegedly handing over forged checks and receiving keys to the properties before the payments were discovered to be bogus. During the several days landlords waited for the checks to clear, he allegedly advertised the units online as available rentals under at least 11 aliases, with rotating phone numbers and email addresses — purported alter egos included Rajib “Raj” Sharma, Sammy Miah, Barry Padmanabhan, Bobby Gupta, Dave Mair and Ahmed Abbas, per the Queens DA’s office. The alleged scheme spanned seven Queens properties and one in Brooklyn. Eager renters provided payments that often amounted to thousands of dollars and received phony leases; some received keys that did not work, and one showed up ready to move in only to find another family already living there — apparently a victim of the same alleged racket.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Charged. Verma was arraigned October 29, 2026, on a 40-count indictment including scheme to defraud, grand larceny, identity theft, criminal possession of stolen property and criminal possession of forged instruments. He has not been tried; he is presumed innocent, and his attorney denies the allegations.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced the indictment on October 30, 2026. “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.” The indictment’s 40 counts, per the DA’s office, include scheme to defraud in the first and second degrees, seven counts of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, 13 counts of third-degree criminal possession of stolen property, 12 counts of third-degree grand larceny, two counts of first-degree identity theft, and two counts each of fourth-degree grand larceny and fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Queens Supreme Court Justice Leigh Cheng ordered Verma to return to court on November 23. His attorney, Joseph Grasso, denied the allegations, describing Verma as a “devoted husband, father, and family man who resides with and helps care for his elderly parents.” Katz’s office urged anyone who believes they were taken advantage of by Verma to contact its Consumer Fraud Helpline.

Public Reaction and Consequences

The case circulated as a nightmare version of New York’s notoriously cutthroat apartment hunt, where coverage noted some unlucky renters discovered their winning ticket was a fake only after showing up with their keys. The indictment also landed amid a broader rise in rental fraud: complaints about suspected rental scams in New York state rose 55% between 2023 and 2025, from 378 to 589, according to state data obtained by CBS News New York and cited in the NY Post’s report, while nationally consumers reported nearly 65,000 rental scams and roughly $65 million in losses between January 2020 and June 2025, per Federal Trade Commission figures cited in the same report. The DA’s public call for additional possible Verma victims to come forward signaled that prosecutors believe the 15 known victims may not be the full count.

Current Status

Verma has been indicted and arraigned but not tried, and the charges against him are allegations; the DA’s own release notes that a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. He is due back in Queens Supreme Court on November 23, 2026, and faces up to seven years behind bars if convicted on all counts. No plea has been publicly reported in the coverage to date, and his attorney’s denial — calling him a devoted family man and caregiver to his elderly parents — stands as the only public response from the defense side. If additional victims come forward through the Consumer Fraud Helpline, the charge count or the loss total could grow.

Impact on Their Career/Life

A man who, per his attorney, cared for his elderly parents in Franklin Square now stands accused of turning New York’s desperate rental market into a personal revenue stream under roughly a dozen identities. The indictment lands in a market where similar schemes have already ended in convictions: coverage of the case noted that last year Nicholas Fuelling scammed 17 people out of roughly $50,000 by advertising a bedroom sublease in a Hell’s Kitchen apartment he rented, and pleaded guilty earlier this month to grand larceny and fraud. For the 15 alleged victims — some out thousands of dollars, one briefly left without a home to move into — the case is a reminder that a lease, keys and a handshake in New York’s rental scramble can all be forged.

Sources

NY Post, “Long Island man indicted in $61K NYC apartment rental scam” — source
Queens County District Attorney’s Office, “Long Island man charged with scheme to defraud for real estate scam that targeted renters” — source
WDC News 6, “The Faux Real Estate Agent With a Dozen Names” — source
X post, @nypost, “Fake agent allegedly used a dozen aliases to fleece NYC apartment hunters out of $61K” — source