02 March,2016 09:50 AM IST | | Vijay Kumar Yadav
A fraudster posing as a DCP called three constables and asked them to deposit money in a specific e-wallet account; two of his accomplices nabbed in Delhi on Saturday
Following the arrest of two men from Delhi on Saturday evening, the Mumbai Crime Branch busted an inter-state racket of conning policemen. The accused were identified as Hemraj Dalal and Sunil Mishra from Gurgaon. The incident came to light after it was learnt that the fraudsters had conned three ACPs and two constables from Mumbai in the second week of February.
Representational pic
A source claimed that one of their accomplices, who is on the run, called the ACPs of Pydhonie, Goregaon and Samata Nagar divisions. After introducing himself as the Zonal DCP, he secured the numbers of wireless operators (police constables).
Modus operandi
"The fraudster then called the constables and told them his men had laid a trap to nab a dreaded criminal and his men urgently needed talktime top-ups. He asked the constables to deposit money into an e-wallet account. He assured them that the amount would be refunded once the operation was over," a police officer said.
He added that the fraudster would not disconnect the call until the constable had transferred the said amount. "A junior officer will never question a DCP-rank officer. The fraudster exploited the chain of command. Two of the three constables fell prey to the con and deposited Rs 60,000 and Rs 30,000 respectively. But the third constable smelled a rat and refrained from following the instructions. The fraud came to light after the constables informed their ACPs about the phone call," the officer said.
Based on the complaint filed by the constable from Pydhonie police station, an offence was registered at the Cyber crime cell in BKC following which Crime Branch (Unit-2) launched a probe into the matter.
In police net
Investigators scrutinised call records, zeroed in on two of the suspects in Delhi and nabbed Dalal and Mishra on Saturday. During interrogation, the duo revealed that the gang had duped personnel from Delhi Police, Rajasthan Police and Uttar Pradesh police in past. "Dalal's brothers are in jail for similar cases. Also, they have murder cases registered against them," said another officer. He added that Mishra is associated with a cellular network service provider and procured 30 SIM cards for the gang without submitting valid documents. The police have launched a manhunt to nab the person who called the constables.
