MUMBAI, June 2 -- A cashier accused of siphoning off Rs.24 lakh from the Mumbai Cricket Association's (MCA) premium Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana in Kandivali has been arrested after remaining on the run for nearly 15 months, police said. The arrest comes a little over a year after Mumbai's elite club circuit was shaken by the alleged Rs.77.52-crore embezzlement at the United Services (US) Club in Colaba. The accused, identified as Tejaram Ashok Pednekar, allegedly manipulated financial records and diverted club funds while working as a cashier at the gymkhana's restaurant and bar facilities. He had allegedly absconded immediately after a fraud and embezzlement case was registered against him in February 2025. According to the complainant, Jitendra Verma, senior accounts and finance manager at Shirke Recreation Enterprises, the company had entered into an agreement to oversee the complete management of the Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana in Mahavir Nagar, Kandivali. The arrangement covered all operational and financial aspects of the club, including its sports activities, gymnasium, swimming pool, banquet hall, three restaurants and two bars. Spread across more than 10 acres, the gymkhana is among the city's most prominent sporting and social destinations. Managed by the MCA, it offers high-end sports infrastructure and premium recreational facilities, with lifetime memberships reportedly costing between Rs.10 lakh and Rs.15 lakh. The alleged fraud came to light during an audit of accounts covering the period between May and December 2024. Verma discovered discrepancies amounting to Rs.24 lakh and initiated a detailed review of the records. The inquiry revealed that billing entries recorded in the club's software reflected higher collections, while the corresponding amounts deposited in the club's bank accounts were significantly lower. Investigators suspect that the difference was misappropriated through falsified accounting entries. Based on the findings, Verma lodged a complaint with the Kandivali police in February 2025. After verifying the allegations, the police registered a case against Pednekar for falsification of records and misappropriation of club funds. However, soon after the case was registered, Pednekar disappeared. Police teams tracked his movements for more than a year before finally apprehending him last week. "We produced him before a court, which remanded him to judicial custody," said an officer from Kandivali police station. The case has revived memories of the massive alleged fraud at the United Services (US) Club in Colaba, one of Mumbai's most prestigious institutions. In that case, former deputy finance secretary Bernadette Varma, her husband and two others were accused of siphoning off around Rs.77.52 crore by allegedly creating fake vendor accounts. Following a complaint by a senior Indian Navy officer, the police registered a fraud case and the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) later filed an 8,990-page chargesheet. Investigators alleged that funds were embezzled over nearly two decades through multiple fraudulent bank accounts opened in the names of vendors....