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Home guard posing as cop, arrested for extortion in Ghaziabad
The suspect was identified as Pinkal Singh, police said, adding that they have recovered ₹23,200 from his possession
A 32-year-old home guard stationed in Noida’s Sector 58 was arrested by the Ghaziabad police on allegations of extorting ₹24,000 from a businessman travelling from Haryana to Meerut via the Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) on July 29, police said.
The suspect was identified as Pinkal Singh, police said, adding that they have recovered ₹23,200 from his possession.
Deepak Kumar, the victim, said, “The suspect noticed my car before Bhojpur and stopped it on the DME using his motorcycle. As my car had some billed goods, he demanded ₹50,000 to allow me to proceed. He was dressed in a Khaki uniform, and I informed him that I possessed all the necessary invoices. However, he seized my car keys and insisted on money. I mentioned having only ₹4,000, upon which he parked his motorcycle on the expressway and accompanied me to an ATM.”
Verma said that upon exiting the Modinagar toll area, the suspect resisted when toll staff signalled for the car to halt. The suspect, when asked for identification by the toll staff, responded with threats and a claim of being a police officer, he added.
“He then took me to a nearby ATM, from which I withdrew ₹20,000, handing over a total of ₹24,000 to the suspect. At that point, I became convinced that he wasn’t a policeman and might be involved in criminal activities. Thus, I complied silently with his demands. Subsequently, he returned my car to the expressway and instructed me to leave. He fled on his motorcycle. Following this, I sought assistance from the police,” Verma said.
The Bhojpur police filed an FIR under Sections 341 (wrongful restraint) and 384 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code.
“We assembled multiple teams and, utilizing CCTV footage and local insights, identified the suspect as a resident of Bhojpur, currently serving as a home guard in Noida,” said, Gyan Prakash Rai, ACP (Modinagar). He also said that the suspect’s bike was also seized.
The home guard has been presented before a court and subsequently remanded to judicial custody, said the ACP.
“We are also sending a report to the district home guard commandant about the case and the suspect, for further action,” ACP added.
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