Mumbai: Two men posing as cops try to abduct, rob couple; one held

Two men posing as policemen tried to kidnap and rob a young couple in the Peddar Road area in the wee hours of Sunday, but the attempt was foiled after a scuffle alerted the police and local residents.

Two men posing as policemen tried to kidnap and rob a young couple in the Peddar Road area in the wee hours of Sunday, but the attempt was foiled after a scuffle alerted the police and local residents.

One of the accused has been arrested. The complainant, a 22-year-old resident of Kopar Khairane, works in a Mhape-based private firm. He was riding toward Marine Lines on a bike with a colleague around 2am on Sunday when the incident took place, said the police.

“When the two were riding near the Porsche showroom at Kemps Corner, two men on a motorcycle asked them to stop. The two told the complainant his bike is from outside Mumbai, and demanded his licence,” said inspector Ravidutt Sawant of the Gamdevi police station.

When the complainant asked the two to show their identity cards as they were not in police uniform, one of them slapped him. They then snatched his driving license, said the police.

The men asked the complainant and his friend to accompany them to the police station and collect his driving licence.

While one of the accused started driving the complainant’s bike, another made his friends sit pillion on their bike. They drove around for almost four kilometres, till the complainant realised they were not taking them to the police station. He started shouting for help, and at Bhendi Bazaar, he had a scuffle with the accused and managed to take out the keys from the bike.

Because of the commotion, locals and patrolling officers from the JJ Marg police station reached the spot. One of the accused was caught, and later identified as Salim Irshad Khan, 42, a resident of Mumbra. Khan’s accomplice, on realising he was caught, left the bike and fled. His bike had a blank number plate.

Khan has been booked under relevant sections of the IPC for impersonating a public servant, assault and kidnapping and handed over to the Gamdevi police station.

“We are checking if the accused has impersonated cops earlier. The bike is suspected to be stolen,” Sawant said.