Pune: A man posing as an officer of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was arrested by the Pune Crime Branch for allegedly demanding ₹4.25 lakh from a grain trader in Gujarat on the pretext of reactivating his frozen bank account, officials said on Tuesday.
The accused has been identified as Paresh Pravin Kothari, who was arrested by the Anti-Extortion Cell of the Pune Crime Branch following a trap operation. A case has been registered against him at Parvati Police Station.
According to police, the complainant, a grain trader from Rajkot, Gujarat, found that his Bank of Baroda account had been frozen after online transactions worth ₹4,000 were credited to it on March 9. During his inquiry, he learned that the amount had been transferred from bank accounts in Pune's Dhankawadi area.
When the trader contacted the person linked to the transactions, the accused allegedly introduced himself as a RAW officer and initially demanded ₹5 lakh to restore the bank account. He later reduced the demand to ₹4.25 lakh and allegedly threatened the trader with serious consequences if the money was not paid.
Police said that during a meeting at a café on Satara Road in June, the accused allegedly displayed a "Police Mitra" identity card and identified himself as Paresh Kothari.
The trader subsequently lodged a written complaint with the Pune Crime Branch on July 13. As the threats allegedly continued even after the complaint, the Anti-Extortion Cell laid a trap near Panchami Chowk. Kothari was caught red-handed on Friday evening while allegedly arriving to collect the extortion money.
Speaking to The Free Press Journal, Sadashiv Kopnar, Police Sub-Inspector of Parvati Police Station, said, "The accused has been arrested. We are verifying whether he has committed any other similar offences. Further investigation is underway."
