Mohali: 2 women under 8 arrested for extortion of ₹50L, posing as NIA officials

Zirakpur police have arrested eight persons, including two women, for allegedly posing as National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials and trying to extort money. ₹50 lakh from a local businessman. Two cars, fake National Crime Research Intelligence Bureau identity cards, police uniform belts and fake Aadhaar cards, among other items, have been seized, police said.

The accused have been identified as Sushil Kumar and Nitesh from Jhajjar in Haryana, Neelam from Uttam Nagar in Delhi, Dalwinder Singh from Maloya, Chandigarh, Radhe Shyam from Ropar, Raj Kumar from Uttam Nagar in Delhi, Shubhash Chandar from Sirsa (Haryana) and Jyoti from Dwarka in New Delhi. Sushil Kumar is believed to be the mastermind behind the gang.

Addressing a press conference at Zirakpur police station on Saturday, Superintendent of Police (Rural) Manpreet Singh and Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Simranjit Singh Lang said that Sushil Kumar, posing as the NIA chief, had called real estate dealer and agriculturalist Veerpal Singh of Sector 39-B, Chandigarh, on July 17. “Sushil threatened the victim with an investigation into his properties and bank accounts. He accused him of fraud related to the purchase of land worth Rs. ₹30 crore in Delhi. The accused told him that the NIA was investigating the case as a huge amount had been transferred to his account,” said SP Manpreet Singh.

“After the victim got scared, Kumar searched ₹50 lakh from him for giving a clean slate. The victim expressed his helplessness in giving such a huge amount but agreed to pay ₹10 lakh. He told them to go to an eatery the next morning but informed the Zirakpur police,” the SP said.

Acting swiftly, a team led by Jaskanwal Singh Sekhon reached the dhaba and arrested the suspects who were present in two cars. During the investigation, it was revealed that the gang was involved in targeting multiple persons.

According to the SP: “On July 16, the same gang entered the house of one Mahesh Gupta in Delhi and robbed him of his belongings. ₹1.35 lakh. The gang members disguise themselves as NIA sleuths to threaten the victims. They conducted reconnaissance of their targets to assess their capacity to pay before contacting them. We will investigate their involvement in other cases, if any, and also how they met and formed the gang.”

Another police officer said there may be more suspects involved, including local residents who knew about the victim.

The suspects have been booked under sections 319 (2), 318 (4), 61 (2), 308 (2) and 62 of the BNS at Zirakpur police station.