Mumbai: In a shocking development, the crime branch (railways) has arrested a woman police officer for her alleged involvement in the Rs 10.30 lakh extortion from a garment businessman at Bandra Terminus on Monday.
Mumbai railway police chief said, “The Bandra railway police station senior inspector Nandkumar Khadkikar and (accused cop) Vijaya Ingavale have been suspended.”
So far, four accused have nabbed, while the police said that a total eight people are involved. Ingavale has been allegedly running the extortion racket for four to five years.
Accused Remanded to Police Custody
The Government Railway Police (GRP) on Wednesday arrested assistant sub-inspector Vijaya Ingavale, 52, attached to the Bandra Government Railway Police station along with Nilesh Kalsulkar, 45, and Praveen Shukla, 32, who posed as fake cops and extorted the money.
Meanwhile, one Ravi Singh, 25, was detained on Thursday. Ingavale Kalsulkar's bail plea has been rejected and she along with Shukla have been remanded to police custody till September 10, as per sources.
Educated Accused Behind the Racket
A police officer said that the arrested accused are well-educated. While Kalsulkar is a mechanical engineer, Shukla holds an MBA in finance and works part-time in the loan business.
A cheating case was registered against Kalsulkar 10 years ago. Along with seven other accused, the woman officer conspired to dupe passengers.
Targeting Businessman Under Pretext of Crypto Deal
The officer said that Kalsulkar has known Ingavale for four to five years. His role was to scout for wealthy targets at Bandra Terminus. In the case, which exposed the racket, the complainant, Vikas Gupta, 31, was allegedly convinced by his friend to bring cash to exchange it with crypto and purchase electronic goods.
When Gupta arrived at Bandra Terminus, Kalsulkar and Singh, posing as police officers, approached him, while four others stood behind them. They removed money from his bag under the pretext of checking it, said the officer, adding that they later took him to the Bandra police station where Ingavale allegedly threatened him with a raid on his residence and imprisonment.
Activist Flags Rising Extortion Cases by GRP
Activist Samir Zaveri said, “In a short span, one incident after another has exposed the GRP's involvement in extortion of passengers under the pretext of baggage checking. In the Bandra Terminus case, extortion was carried out by fake cops in nexus with the real police personnel.” This new modus operandi was meant to prevent identification of the police personnel, he added.
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Past Incidents Add to Suspicion
Under the guidance of Kalasagar, crime branch senior inspector Vijya Khedkar and police inspector Rohit Sawant exposed the racket. On August 10, three police personnel allegedly extorted Rs30,000 from a jeweller at Mumbai Central. On June 13, railway police allegedly extorted Rs 5,000 from a passenger at the Vasai station.
