Mumbai: The Mumbai Police have arrested four men who posed as Intelligence Bureau (IB) officers and extorted ₹11.5 lakh from a jeweller in South Mumbai. The accused raided the jeweller’s office under the pretense of investigating illegal cash transactions in gold dealings, threatening to file a case unless he paid them ₹25 lakh.
On March 19, the four impostors stormed into the Bohiwada-based jewellery office near Bhuleshwar. Posing as IB officers from Delhi, they ordered the staff to turn off all phones and prevented anyone from leaving the premises. The gang accused the jeweller of being involved in cash-based gold transactions, claiming it was a serious legal offense.
When the jeweller expressed his inability to pay ₹25 lakh, the impostors intimidated him. Fearing legal action, he agreed to pay ₹11.5 lakh. The accused collected the cash, claiming they needed to deliver it to their senior officers. However, they never returned. Realizing he had been scammed, the jeweller immediately filed a complaint at the VP Road Police Station.
Based on the complaint, the police registered a case under Sections 308(3), 332(c), 333, 204, and 3(5) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita. Special police teams were deployed, and CCTV footage from the jeweller’s office was thoroughly examined.
The breakthrough came when the police tracked the suspects’ movements using surveillance footage from nearby areas. Acting promptly, the police launched a raid and arrested all four accused within 24 hours.
