Dino Morea Appears Before EOW for Second Round of Questioning in Mithi River Cleaning Scam

Mumbai, May 28: Bollywood actor Dino Morea on Wednesday appeared before the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police for a second round of questioning in connection with the multi-crore Mithi River cleaning scam. The actor complied with a fresh summons issued by the EOW, as investigators dig deeper into the alleged misappropriation of public funds meant for the river rejuvenation project.

The Mithi River scam involves the suspected diversion of crores of rupees allocated for the river’s cleaning and restoration. Despite significant expenditure, there has been minimal visible progress, prompting investigations into the roles of various government officials and private contractors.

Dino Morea had earlier appeared at the EOW office on Monday, accompanied by his brother Santino Morea, where he reportedly underwent an eight-hour-long interrogation session. Authorities are scrutinizing a company named UBO Ridez Private Limited, co-founded by Santino Morea and Ketan Kadam’s wife during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Although registered as an electric cart service provider, the firm is suspected of being misrepresented as a pipeline-related business to enable questionable financial dealings.

Sources indicate that a firm linked to Dino Morea was among those awarded contracts associated with the Mithi River cleaning project. Investigators suspect that funds may have been diverted through this firm, which led to the actor being summoned.

During the latest round of questioning, Morea was reportedly asked about the formation and functioning of the company, the contract acquisition process, and the actual utilization of the project funds. Investigative officials are evaluating whether the firm served as a front for laundering money under the guise of infrastructure development.

As the probe intensifies, EOW officials have not ruled out the possibility of summoning Morea again. Meanwhile, several government officials and contractors remain under the scanner, with the case attracting increasing public attention due to the high-profile names involved and the sheer scale of alleged corruption.

The Mithi River cleaning project was initiated with the goal of restoring the heavily polluted water body in Mumbai. However, with large sums allegedly siphoned off and minimal results achieved on the ground, the scandal has raised serious questions about transparency and accountability in public infrastructure projects.

The investigation remains ongoing.