Ludhiana: ‘Fake’ SI’s extortion spree ends, uniform, ID card, car seized

Accused was hunting for a ‘target’ near grain market on Jalandhar Bypass in Ludhiana when he was arrested, say police

A man posing as a sub-inspector to extort money from arhtiyas (commission agents), shopkeepers and commuters was arrested on Tuesday night, officials said.

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They added that the accused threatened the victims that he would implicate them in drug peddling cases if they did not pay.

The Jodhewal police arrested the accused, Anmol Sidhu, 30, of Chhawni Mohalla, near Grain Market on Jalandhar Bypass following a tip-off. The accused was targeting more victims at the time of his arrest.

Police said that the accused was unemployed and was involved in extorting money for the past six months. His father is a municipal corporation employee. When the police rounded him up, the accused tried to influence them by claiming that he was deputed with CIA staff, Jalandhar.

A police uniform, a police identity card and a Toyota Innova vehicle were seized from the accused. The police are questioning to find out where the uniform and identity card were procured from.

Assistant commissioner of police (ACP north) Jayant Puri said the police received information on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday that a cop was threatening people for money. A police team reached the spot and began investigating.

“The accused, who was in police uniform, claimed that he was deputed with CIA staff, Jalandhar. The police verified and found his claims to be fake. When the police posed harshly, the accused confessed that he is an imposter. The police arrested him and registered a case under sections 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (forgery of valuable security, will, etc), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), 170 (personating a public servant), 171 (wearing garb or carrying token used by public servant with fraudulent intent) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC),” said the ACP.

“The accused told police that he procured the identity card from an aide. Police are questioning the accused to discover who helped him in procuring the police uniform and identity card. The police got a one-day remand of the accused,” he added.

The ACP added that they had received multiple complaints against the accused. He used to roam around the city in a police uniform at night and extort money from commuters on the pretext of checking. He was extorting money from several arhtiyas, shopkeepers and lottery shops every month by threatening them of implicating them in criminal cases.

The police expect more important information from the accused during questioning.