Man posed as Dawood aide, made extortion calls

When a retired bank employee got a SMS demanding Rs 2 crore from a man claiming to be a member of Dawood Ibrahim gang, he almost believed him.

When a retired bank employee got a SMS demanding Rs 2 crore from a man claiming to be a member of Dawood Ibrahim gang, he almost believed him.

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But when Cyrus Vach (63), a resident of Sealand Building in Cuffe Parade, started getting phone calls from the same person threatening him, he decided to negotiate.

"The caller threatened Vach that he was being watched and if he wanted to live he should pay them Rs 2 crore. Claiming to be a humble retired bank employee, Vach told the caller that he would not be able to give the money," said police inspector Vilas Bhole. "After three days of repeated calls, Vach decided to negotiate with the caller. Vach brought down the extortion amount to Rs 4 lakh."

On Thursday, the caller called Vach at the Sion railway station to give him the cash. Vach approached the Cuffe Parade police and registered a complaint.

"We immediately sent a team to Sion station. We gave Vach duplicate notes in a bag and asked him to carry it to the station," added Bhole.

The police are trying to find out how Khan got Vach's mobile number and what was the motive behind the extortion calls.