Mumbai: A yoga instructor from Santacruz West was cheated by two men posing as policemen, collecting money to distribute clothes and food to the poor. The complainant, Anand Joshi, 67, lodged a complaint at Santacruz police station on Wednesday, saying that he was convinced with the narrative that his neighbour donated Rs10,000 and was shown a fake entry in a register.

When Joshi asked about payment, they asked him to scan a QR code, and he transferred Rs2,000. Later, his neighbour informed him that the men were impostors. It was found that their uniforms were fake and they had arrived on a motorcycle.

In a separate case on Thursday, a hotel and lodge owner, Ratikrushna Patnaik, 55, from Goregaon West, complained to Bangur Nagar police on Thursday of being cheated by a man posing as a crime branch officer named ‘Prakash’ seeking a room, purportedly for VIP bandobast duty. When the lodge staff later asked him for his ID or payment, he refused, allegedly threatened them, and left without paying.

In both cases, offences have been registered under Section 204 (personating a public servant) and other relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Mumbai: A BMC clerk was recently duped of Rs5.46 lakh in an online shopping scam. The complainant, Bhupali M, 32, a resident of Santacruz, placed a few orders using the Meesho app on September 30. Days later, she received calls from three unknown numbers.

The callers, claiming to be Meesho employees, informed that the parcels were ready for delivery, but the payment had not been received yet. The scammers then sent her a QR code and asked to enter a specific code, said Bhupali, adding Rs5.46 lakh got debited from her account in an unauthorised manner on October 8. After verifying the complaint, the police lodged the FIR a week later.

Mumbai: In a dramatic turn of events, a robbery attempt at a jewellery store in Ghatkopar led to the arrest of two college students, while their third accomplice remains absconding. The trio, all close friends, had carefully planned the heist, but left behind a bag that ultimately helped the police crack the case.

The Ghatkopar police have arrested Tanish Sushil Bhaisade,20, a resident of Kurla, and Suraj Jagdish Yadav,20, from Kopri in Thane. Both are B.Com students at a local college in Ghatkopar. Their third accomplice, Chandrakiran Yadav,20, who resides in Bhatwadi, Ghatkopar, is currently on the run.

According to police, the three friends decided to rob a jewellery store to get rich quickly. Inspired by movies, they drew up a plan and conducted a recce in the Amrutnagar area two days before the incident. Though they initially targeted a large jewellery store, they changed plans at the last moment and decided to rob “Darshan Jewellers” instead.

On the morning of the robbery, finding only one staff member in the store, the trio stormed in. They threatened the shop owner, Darshan Mitkari, with a knife and a firearm. However, Mitkari bravely resisted and was injured in the process. Amid the chaos, the accused fled with only 3 tolas of gold and accidentally left behind a bag they had brought to carry the loot.

The bag proved to be a breakthrough for the police it contained Chandrakiran’s Aadhaar card and a luggage receipt. CCTV footage also helped identify the suspects. While fleeing, Tanish and Suraj escaped on a two-wheeler, while Chandrakiran ran away on foot with the stolen gold. As locals chased him, he fired a shot into the air from his weapon to escape.

A case was registered against the unidentified assailants, and the Ghatkopar police formed 14 teams to investigate the crime. The police tracked Tanish and Suraj using technical evidence and arrested them from Marol within hours. They had travelled through Thane, Sion, Dadar, Kurla, and even visited Kopri before returning to Marol, where they were eventually caught.

Chandrakiran, who is a Class 12 dropout, had become friends with Tanish and Suraj while visiting his girlfriend, who studies in the same college as the other two accused.

According to police records, Tanish has a past case involving kidnapping, while the other two have no prior criminal record. The search for Chandrakiran Yadav is ongoing.