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Four held for extortion of a doctor from Hadapsar
The four arrested were identified as Pradeep Fasge, 37, a resident of Manjri, Arti Chavan, 29, a resident of Fursungi, and Kailas Bhanudas Avchite, 38, a resident of Phule Vasahat in Hadapsar, and a police official named Sammer Thorat, also a resident of Hadapsar
Four people including a police and a journalist impersonator were arrested by Pune police crime branch officials for extortion worth Rs 5.89 lakh.
A complaint in the matter was lodged by a practising gynaecologist in the Hadapsar area of Pune.
The four arrested were identified as Pradeep Fasge, 37, a resident of Manjri, Arti Chavan, 29, a resident of Fursungi, and Kailas Bhanudas Avchite, 38, a resident of Phule Vasahat in Hadapsar, and a police official named Sammer Thorat, also a resident of Hadapsar.
“The fourth arrested person is constable Sameer Jagannath Thorat. He is posted at the police headquarters in Shivajinagar,” said a senior police inspector Rajendra Mohite of the anti-extortion cell of Pune police.
There are two others, including a woman, booked in the case along with these four, according to the police. A bigger racket of extortion is suspected to be at play.
On May 31, one of the two women named in the case posed as a patient and visited the doctor. Upon entering the consultation room, the woman allegedly started raising an alarm after which her accomplices came into the room and took the doctor. The men told the doctor and one of his colleagues that they are police officials and forced them inside a car. Two among the seven pretended to be reporters. The two doctors were allegedly driven in the direction of Saswad and brought back to an office space in Hadapsar where they were forced to remain for a day. The seven booked allegedly demanded Rs 10 lakh from the doctors and settled for Rs 7 lakh. The doctors managed to gather Rs 5.89 lakh and gave it to seven people.
The crime branch officials are investigating the case with a suspicion of a larger racket, according to police officials. A case under Section 364(a) (kidnapping for ransom), 384, 386, 388 (extortion by threat of accusation of an offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life, etc), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 506(1) (criminal intimidation), 143, 34 of Indian Penal Code was registered at Hadapsar police station against the seven.
