Mumbai: Former Police Constable Arrested For Extorting ₹8,400 From Paan Vendor By Impersonating Crime Branch Officer

Mumbai: Azad Maidan Police have arrested a dismissed police employee for extorting money from a paan vendor by impersonating a Crime Branch officer. The accused, a former police constable, had been dismissed from service in 2008 and had not been on duty since then. The accused has been identified as Uttam More (53).

According to the police, the incident took place near Dhobi Talao, where the paan vendor operated his shop. On December 30, 2024, at 9:30 PM, 40-year-old Suresh Ramdev Barai, a paan vendor, was conducting his business when the accused approached him, claiming to be a Crime Branch police officer. The accused, pretending to show a police identification card, inquired if the paan vendor had the required license for running his business. He then told Barai that he would take him to the Crime Branch office, asking him to get into a taxi.

The accused drove Barai to Byculla, where he made Barai transfer ₹8,400 via Google Pay to the taxi driver's mobile. After the accused made the paan vendor transfer the money via Google Pay, he instructed Barai to leave. The accused then took the taxi driver to Bhaykhala, where the driver was directed to collect the money that Barai had transferred. The accused withdrew the ₹8,400 from the driver’s Google Pay account, completing the fraudulent act.

The accused took the money for personal use, deceiving the paan vendor. Following Barai's detailed statement, an FIR was filed at Azad Maidan Police Station, and further investigation is underway to arrest the accused. According to police information, the incident came to light after paan vendor Suresh Barai filed a complaint with Azad Maidan Police. The police registered an FIR and, through investigation, traced the accused, Uttam More. Initially, the police arrested the taxi driver, who confirmed that money had been transferred on More's instructions. The police then tracked down More, who had collected the cash from the taxi driver after the money transfer.

The accused, who had multiple FIRs registered against him in various police stations in Mumbai, was arrested from his residence in Dombivli at Loda Heritage building. The accused had transferred ₹8,400 to the taxi driver.