PSI arrested for demanding bribe from cab driver

Mumbai police sub-inspector arrested for demanding ₹2,000 bribe from cab driver with pending traffic e-challans. Suspended from service.

MUMBAI: The Anti-Corruption Bureau on Friday arrested a police sub-inspector for allegedly asking for a bribe of ₹2,000 from a cab driver, who had pending traffic e-challans against his vehicle. The Mumbai police on Thursday suspended the accused from service. The alleged accused sub-inspector had caught the cab driver with a pending traffic e-challans of ₹17,000 and to settle it he demanded a bribe, said police sources.

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The accused Francis Rocky Rego is a sub-inspector with the Sahar traffic division. According to the police, on March 14, Rego stopped a cab owned by the complainant. He found the vehicle had pending e-challans to the tune of ₹17,000 for various traffic violations. “The PSI kept the vehicle with him and initially asked the cab owner to clear all the e-challans when he expressed inability to pay the full amount, the police officer asked him to pay ₹2,000 as a bribe amount to release the detained vehicle,” said the police officer.

The vehicle was stopped at Bisleri Junction in Andheri East and as the vehicle owner was already tired of him, he contacted the ACB Worli office. ACB officials verified the demand for a bribe and on the same day a trap was arranged in which Rego was arrested while accepting the bribe amount, said a police officer.

“He was booked under section 7 (offence relating to public servant being bribed) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988,” said the police officer.

“The Mumbai traffic police are already struggling to recover the dues emanating from e-challans, as motorists booked for various traffic violations are not paying the fine amounts and a major reason for e-challans remaining pending is the traffic officials are not taking proactive steps to recover the dues from the vehicle owners,” added the police officer. “As Rego’s conduct was against service rules, we suspended him. An inquiry has also been started against him.”