Fake Police Gang Busted in Satara; 7 Arrested, ₹21.19 Lakh Worth Assets Seized

Satara: The Pusegaon police have busted a gang of seven people who were impersonating police officers and extorting money from motorists by setting up barricades on roads at night and threatening them with legal action.  In the operation, two four-wheelers, eight mobile phones, and cash totalling ₹21,19,500 were seized. All seven suspects have been arrested and remanded in police custody till Friday.Superintendent of Police Nikhil Pingle shared details of the operation at a press conference in Satara. Additional SP Dr. Vaishali Kadukar, Koregaon DySP Ashwini Shendge, and Local Crime Branch Inspector Vishwajit Ghodke were also present.According to SP Pingle, on July 13 at around 11:45 PM, Pusegaon police received information that a gang had set up barricades near Nayara Petrol Pump at Vardhangad (Khatav taluka) and was extorting money from drivers. A team led by Assistant Police Inspector Nagnath Khune rushed to the spot and found men and women in police uniform as well as civilian clothes stopping vehicles under the pretext of checking.When the suspects noticed the police, they tried to flee but were chased and apprehended. Interrogation revealed that none of them were from the police department. Two victims — Rishikesh Babaso Shirtode (Nagnathwadi) and Suraj Lahukumar Shirtode (Lalgun) — stated that the gang had posed as police and extorted ₹500 from them by threatening action.The arrested persons are: Vikas Dattatray Shinde (Nagao Road, Walwa), Vaibhav Pandurang Pawar, Rahul Sunil Patil, Ketan Babasaheb Mahajan (all from Miraj area), Priyanka Randeep Naik (Shirol, Kolhapur), Priyanka Sanjay Bhore, and Aruna Dayanand Awale. They confessed to the crime during interrogation.The police seized a Tata Safari Storme (MH 12 MF 3832), a Maruti Swift Dzire (MH 10 CA 4937), eight Android mobile phones, and ₹2,200 in cash.The operation was conducted under the guidance of SP Nikhil Pingle, Additional SP Dr. Vaishali Kadukar, and DySP Rajashree Terni. Senior officers have congratulated the team for their good work.