Two arrested for posing as IT and DRI chiefs

MUMBAI: The Mumbai crime branch arrested two people, including a software programmer, on Thursday, for posing as the income tax commissioner and the Directorate

MUMBAI: The Mumbai crime branch arrested two people, including a software programmer, on Thursday, for posing as the income tax commissioner and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) chief to cheat a movie set designer.

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The accused were identified as Murli Mundhada, 36, and Mahesh Khetwani, 41, both residents of Thane. On May 5, Mundhada sent a text message to a movie set designer identifying himself as IT commissioner Anil Kumar. He asked the complainant to arrange a visit for his friends to a set for seeing a movie shoot, to which the complainant obliged. The accused then sent a text message after a few days cautioning the set designer that DRI was planning to conduct raids at his office. “The accused called him and he was told the DRI chief was a friend and that he [Mundhada] had asked him not to conduct any raids. Mundhada also gave him his number and asked him to telephone him,” said an AEC officer.

When the complainant called the person [Khetwani], he identified himself as Ajit Kumar, DRI chief and asked him to speak to his personal assistant Akshay, who was the accused himself, officials said. The complainant later met Khetwani who demanded Rs50 lakh from him for wading off further problems.