Kutch: A video has surfaced on social media showing a team of fake Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials conducting a raid on a jewellery shop in Gujarat’s Kutch. The incident mirrors the plot of the Bollywood movie Special 26, starring Akshay Kumar. The Kutch Police have busted a 12-member gang that staged a fake raid at the home of a gold businessman, duping him of jewellery and cash worth ₹25 lakh.
The police later paraded the arrested gang members through the streets of the city, with their hands tied together using a rope. Videos of both the parade and the staged raid have gone viral on social media. The fake raid was conducted at the house of the jeweler on December 2.
It can be seen in the video that the man posing as fake ED officer shows his ID card to the businessman to intimidate him. After showing the ID the man demands the detailed account of the businessman’s cash. The fraudster also threatened the businessman of sending him to jail if he denied to comply.
The businessman is also seen in the video who is nervous, says that he is not sure of the amount he has. The fake ED officer then gives him 15 minutes to provide the accurate details of the cash available with him. He also warned the businessman of consequences for providing wrong details. The businessman is seen sitting with his family in the video. His family is also seen anxious over the raid.
As per the complaint filed by the businessman, the impostors targeted his shop named Radhika jewelers which is located in Gandhidham and also his residence at the same time. They fled away with gold, silver and cash worth Rs 25 lakh. The victim reached the police to file a complaint in connection with the matter. The complaint was filed at Gandhidham Division-A Police Station after which the police swung into action and busted the racket.
The police paraded the fake ED officers while taking them to the crime scenes to reenact the events in Gandhidham market. Among the arrested individuals there is one woman. The police said that they also seized goods worth Rs 45 lakh from the arrested accused.
SP Sagar Bagmar said, “Upon receiving information about the incident on the same day, the police in Gandhi Dham immediately formed 10 teams from different areas, including Gandhi Dham, Bhuj, and Ahmedabad, and arrested all the accused. During the investigation, it was revealed that Shailendra Desai, who posed as an ED officer, was the mastermind behind the fake raid. The police are continuing their investigation and will take further action if more people are identified.”
