08 September,2024 07:05 AM IST | Mumbai | Shirish Vaktania
Jaymin Sawaliya, the middle man arrested by Rajkot ACB
The Mumbai police have suspended Assistant Police Inspector (API) Digambar Pagar, attached to the Matunga police station, for allegedly demanding Rs 10 lakh to not arrest a cyber crime suspect from Rajkot, Gujarat. The ACB of the Rajkot division laid a trap, capturing evidence of the bribery through call recordings. An FIR was registered against Pagar and the alleged middleman. The Gujarat police informed the Mumbai police about the FIR, leading to Pagar's suspension. The Rajkot ACB also arrested middle man Jaymin Sawaliya from Rajkot.
According to Gujarat ACB officials, the Matunga police had arrested a suspect from Rajkot in a cyber fraud case in March. In May, API Pagar received information about another suspect in the case. The Matunga police issued a summons to the suspect in Rajkot to appear for investigation and provide a statement. During this period, Sawaliya approached the person under investigation, claiming he had connections within the Mumbai police and a good rapport with Pagar at Matunga police station.
The photogallery here
A Rajkot ACB officer said, "The informant, who is a suspect in the cyber fraud case, approached the ACB Rajkot division. A team led by police inspector R N Virani, under the supervision of K H Gohil, was formed and a trap was laid." The informant met Sawaliya at the T-Post tea shop at Racecourse in Rajkot, where Sawaliya accepted R10 lakh in bribe money from him. The officer said, "Sawaliya acted on behalf of Pagar, demanding Rs 10 lakh as a bribe to avoid arrest."
Senior PI Rajendra Pawar of Matunga police station said, "The Rajkot ACB has registered an FIR against Pagar. He was in Mumbai during the incident. Mumbai police have suspended him, and the case is being investigated by the Gujarat police."
