Nearly a fortnight after a city court directed them to investigate a complaint regarding non-payment of Rs10 lakh to Australian pacer Brett Lee for a concert held in country’s financial hub last year, police on Friday booked three members of a music band on charges of cheating.
"An FIR has been registered against Arundhati Deshmukh, Ameya Naik and Vignesh Vishwanth, all members of music band 'M Majors', over non-payment of dues of Rs10 lakh to Lee," Padmakar Juikar, Senior Inspector at MRA Marg Police Station, said.
The trio has been booked under IPC Sections 420 (cheating) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), Juikar added. On February 14, a Metropolitan Court had directed the police to investigate the complaint lodged by Next Level Media Communications (NLMC), which represents Lee in Mumbai, over non-payment of dues to the Australian cricketer, who is also a singer and guitarist.
According to the complaint, an orchestra had been arranged at a mall in suburban Malad in May last year where Lee performed along with the music band. However, after the event, where Lee sang, the agreed amount was not paid to him.