Fake agent allegedly used a dozen aliases to fleece NYC apartment hunters out of $61K

A Long Island man is accused of turning New York City’s already nightmarish apartment hunt into an even bigger headache — pocketing more than $61,000 from renters who thought they’d finally found a place to call home.Instead, some were left with worthless keys, bogus leases and, in one case, the unwelcome surprise of finding another family already living in their supposed new digs.Rajat Verma, 35, of Franklin Square, allegedly posed as a real estate agent and rented out apartments he didn’t own, sometimes promising the same property to multiple tenants, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office.The scheme targeted at least 15 victims across Queens and Brooklyn, bilking them out of a combined $61,625 in security deposits and other rental payments, prosecutors said.And the way he supposedly pulled it off was almost as brazen as the alleged scam itself.According to prosecutors, Verma first played the role of apartment hunter, approaching small landlords and securing properties with forged checks.Before the landlords realized the payments were bogus, he allegedly got his hands on the keys and began advertising the apartments online as available rentals.He then collected thousands of dollars from eager renters, handing over phony leases and, in some cases, keys that wouldn’t even open the front door, the indictment alleges.One victim showed up ready to move in, only to discover another family had already beaten them to it — after apparently falling for the same scheme.The rental racket ran from September 2022 through November 2023 and involved seven properties in Queens and one in Brooklyn.The Queens locations included Glen Oaks, Rego Park, College Point, Ozone Park, Hollis and Maspeth.Verma also had a knack for reinventing himself, cycling through at least 11 aliases along with different phone numbers and email addresses, according to the DA’s office.Among his purported alter egos were Rajib “Raj” Sharma, Sammy Miah, Barry Padmanabhan, Bobby...