A 38-year-old man from Rajasthan was recently arrested by the Mumbai Crime Branch after a tiresome 24-hour car chase all the way from Gujarat to Bengaluru. His crime? He posed as an IPS Officer and extorted as much as 16 lakhs from a businessman!
According to a report by Hindustan Times, the accused, identified as Shiv Shankar Sharma from Ajmer, allegedly kidnapped a businessman from a hotel in Marine Drive, Mumbai. He used to extort money from him in order to fund his lavish lifestyle.
He extorted the money posing as a senior IPS officer under the pretext of settling a complaint registered against the businessman which was registered in the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence.
Here’s what happened. The accused called the businessman and informed him about the complaint. He then called the businessman to the Marine Drive hotel, claiming that he would settle the matter.
In the hotel, the accused demanded a hefty sum from the businessman if he wanted him to resolve the matter. The two then engaged in a heated argument regarding the money. After this, the accused, along with his other associates, abused him and confined him in the room.
“They threatened and kidnapped him on gunpoint and later drove him to Gujarat to collect the ransom. He was harassed and was released only after he managed to pay Rs 16 lakh cash to the accused,” said a crime branch officer.
After the incident, the businessman then approached Mumbai and Gujarat Police and a complaint was filed. With the help of CCTV surveillance and information from reliable sources, they were able to track the accused after a 1,200 Km long car chase!
“We chased him from Gujarat to Bengaluru for over 24-hours by road and eventually nabbed him in Bengaluru on Tuesday. He was brought to Mumbai and was placed under arrest,” the officer said.
“The accused spend the unlawfully obtained money in his expansive and lavish lifestyle. He owns a car and would keep a senior IPS officer’s uniform and a cover of a service pistol in the car. He would convince his victims by bragging about his alleged clout in the police department and among ministers,” he added.
Anyone looking for a movie plot? This might make one hell of a film!