$82B BOMB SCARE

Plot vs. India tycoon

The richest man in Asia is reportedly at the center of a bomb-scare case that has led to an Indian businessman’s murder and ensnared a Mumbai cop.

According to local media, Sachin Vaze, an assistant police inspector in India’s second-largest city, was arrested Saturday for his alleged role in the threat against tycoon Mukesh Ambani (inset), who on Monday ranked No. 21 on Forbes’ list of the world’s richest individuals, with a fortune of $82 billion.

The wild saga started on Feb. 25, when cops found explosive gelatin sticks inside an SUV parked near Antilia, the private, 27-story Mumbai skyscraper where Ambani lives with his family.

While the Mahindra Scorpio SUV didn’t contain an assembled explosive device, authorities did find a letter warning that the incident was just a “glimpse” of what was to come, according to India’s PTI news agency.

The letter also reportedly contained threats against Ambani, 63, who has amassed his net worth as the chairman of Reliance Industries, an energy and telecom conglomerate.

The Scorpio SUV belonged to Mansukh Hiren, a businessman from the nearby city of Thane who had previously reported the vehicle stolen earlier in February, reports said.

But Hiren was found dead in a creek on March 5, about a week after the SUV was discovered near Ambani’s home.

Hiren’s wife, Vimla Hiren, told investigators that her late husband knew Vaze and alleged that the embattled cop had used the car in recent months before it went missing, the Indian Express newspaper reported.

Vimla Hiren also suspected that Vaze — who was the investigating officer on the bomb-scare case before he was replaced — was involved in her husband’s killing, according to reports.

A top official told the Hindustan Times that Vaze confessed to being part of a group that placed the SUV near Ambani’s towering home, which cost more than $1 billion to build.

Vaze was suspended from Mumbai’s police force on Monday in the wake of his arrest, reports said.

Ambani has stayed quiet about the bomb scare, and Reliance Industries did not respond to a request for comment Monday. But the company issued a statement last month thanking local cops for their “quick and immediate action.”

“We are confident that Mumbai Police will complete their thorough investigation quickly,” a Reliance spokesperson told India’s Business Today magazine.