Mumbai: In a shocking development, the crime branch (railways) has arrested a woman police officer for her alleged involvement in the Rs 10.30 lakh extortion from a garment businessman at Bandra Terminus on Monday.

Mumbai railway police chief, Rakesh Kalasagar, said, “The Bandra railway police station senior inspector Nandkumar Khadkikar and (accused cop) Vijaya Ingavale have been suspended.”

So far, four accused have nabbed, while the police said that a total eight people are involved. Ingavale has been allegedly running the extortion racket for four to five years.

The Government Railway Police (GRP) on Wednesday arrested assistant sub-inspector Vijaya Ingavale, 52, attached to the Bandra Government Railway Police station along with Nilesh Kalsulkar, 45, and Praveen Shukla, 32, who posed as fake cops and extorted the money.

Meanwhile, one Ravi Singh, 25, was detained on Thursday. Ingavale Kalsulkar’s bail plea has been rejected and she along with Shukla have been remanded to police custody till September 10, as per sources.

A police officer said that the arrested accused are well-educated. While Kalsulkar is a mechanical engineer, Shukla holds an MBA in finance and works part-time in the loan business.

A cheating case was registered against Kalsulkar 10 years ago. Along with seven other accused, the woman officer conspired to dupe passengers.

The officer said that Kalsulkar has known Ingavale for four to five years. His role was to scout for wealthy targets at Bandra Terminus. In the case, which exposed the racket, the complainant, Vikas Gupta, 31, was allegedly convinced by his friend to bring cash to exchange it with crypto and purchase electronic goods.

When Gupta arrived at Bandra Terminus, Kalsulkar and Singh, posing as police officers, approached him, while four others stood behind them. They removed money from his bag under the pretext of checking it, said the officer, adding that they later took him to the Bandra police station where Ingavale allegedly threatened him with a raid on his residence and imprisonment.

Activist Samir Zaveri said, “In a short span, one incident after another has exposed the GRP’s involvement in extortion of passengers under the pretext of baggage checking. In the Bandra Terminus case, extortion was carried out by fake cops in nexus with the real police personnel.” This new modus operandi was meant to prevent identification of the police personnel, he added.

Under the guidance of Kalasagar, crime branch senior inspector Vijya Khedkar and police inspector Rohit Sawant exposed the racket. On August 10, three police personnel allegedly extorted Rs30,000 from a jeweller at Mumbai Central. On June 13, railway police allegedly extorted Rs 5,000 from a passenger at the Vasai station.

Maharashtra: In a shocking incident in Chandrapada, Naigaon East, thieves looted jewellery worth Rs 33 lakh from a bungalow and then set fire to an adjacent grocery shop. The Naigaon Police acted swiftly and arrested four accused, including a woman, within just eight hours of the incident.

The burglary took place at a bungalow named ‘Bhimai’, owned by Harshad Mhatre (39). Adjacent to the bungalow is a grocery store named Kamini. On Monday, Mhatre had left for Virar to celebrate Ganeshotsav with relatives, leaving the house unoccupied, as reported by Loksatta. Taking advantage of the situation, the accused broke into the bungalow via the terrace on Tuesday night.

The thieves stole jewellery worth Rs 33 lakh from the house and then set fire to the neighbouring grocery shop. The incident came to light when the fire broke out, prompting a response from the municipal fire brigade, which managed to bring the blaze under control.

Following the incident, a case was registered at Naigaon Police Station under Sections 305, 331(4), and 326(G) of the Indian Penal Code.

Police launched an immediate investigation, and within eight hours, arrested four accused: Ajay Yadav (20), Sonu Faizan Khan (20), Deepak Kharat (21), and Fatima Sheikh (25). The arrests were confirmed by Police Inspector (Crime) Abhijit Madke, who stated that further investigation is ongoing, as reported.

In separate news from Palghar, a 25-year-old pregnant woman gave birth to a baby girl in an 108 ambulance in the early hours of Monday, September 1, while being transferred from Saphale Primary Health Centre to Palghar Rural Hospital due to concerns over possible complications during delivery.

The woman, Vidhi Sambre, a resident of the Saphale area, was pregnant with her second child and had been admitted to Saphale Primary Health Centre late on the night of September 1. After assessing the risk of delivery-related complications, the attending medical officer decided to refer her to Palghar Rural Hospital for advanced medical care.

At around 2:50 a.m., an 108 ambulance was called to transport her. However, during the journey, Vidhi went into labour and successfully delivered a baby girl with the assistance of the ambulance medical team.

Thane: An 88-year-old senior citizen residing in a building opposite Bal Bhavan in Ramnagar, the busiest area of Dombivli East, was cheated by a thief posing as a technician. The incident occurred on Monday evening.

The thief entered the house under the pretence of repairing the internet connection. He then asked the senior citizen to heat some water, claiming it was needed to clean a corroded laptop pin. When the elderly man went to the kitchen to boil water, the thief took advantage of the distraction and fled with cash and a wallet, stealing a total of Rs 9,000.

The victim, Bhalchandra Shridhar Walimbe, a retired resident of Sushila Society on Chiplunkar Road, has filed a complaint at the Ramnagar Police Station. According to his statement, the thief was a man around 30 years old, who rang the doorbell and claimed to be there to repair the internet. As a technician had recently visited for internet issues, Walimbe allowed him in.

Once inside, the man pretended to check the internet connection and examined a laptop, claiming the charger pin was rusted and needed cleaning. He requested hot water to clean it. While Walimbe was occupied in the kitchen, the thief opened a compartment in the house, stole Rs 9,000 kept for regular use, along with a wallet, and escaped, as reported.

When Walimbe returned with the hot water, he found the man missing. A quick search inside and outside the house revealed that the man had fled. It became evident that he was not a technician but a thief who had tricked and robbed the senior citizen. Police Sub-Inspector Waghmode from Ramnagar Police Station is currently investigating the case.