Four Pune Police Constables Accused Of Extorting Gold From Karnataka Jeweller; DCP Denies Allegations – All You Need To Know

Shocking allegations have surfaced against four Pune Police constables — Mahesh Gadhave, Sarfaraz Deshmukh, Sandeep Salve and Somnath Kamble — all from Wanawadi Police Station. They have been accused of going to Karnataka without permission from their seniors and extorting 280 grams of gold from a jeweller. However, DCP Raj Kumar Shinde (Zone 5), speaking to The Free Press Journal on Tuesday, denied all the allegations.

A source said, "During an interrogation of an accused in a house-breaking case in December last year, the constables recovered a receipt of Rs 30,000 with the name of Karnataka-based jeweller Kapil Jain on it. The constables went to the neighbouring state without seeking permission from their seniors. Upon reaching there, they questioned Jain, and he admitted that a 10-gram gold necklace was mortgaged for Rs 30,000 by the accused. However, the constables demanded 1 kg of gold from the jeweller, claiming that he had illegally taken the gold ornament from the accused. They even threatened him and demanded the gold for letting him off without any further investigation. They then took 280 grams of gold from him, claiming it as the seizure of evidence."

"The next day, the jeweller lodged a complaint at the local police station in Karnataka, who then contacted the Wanawadi Police Station. Shockingly, it was found that the police constables had not reported the seizure of gold to their seniors and had distributed it among themselves. Surprisingly, on January 23, Jain requested to close the complaint. He stated in the complaint that he had filed it due to anxiety and fear," added the source.

Speaking to The Free Press Journal, DCP Raj Kumar Shinde (Zone 5) said a detailed investigation has been done regarding the matter, and the allegations of extortion turned out to be false.

"An accused was arrested in the attack on an Assistant Police Inspector deployed at the Wanawadi Police Station. During the interrogation, it was found that he was also involved in a housebreaking case. Following the matter, a team of Wanawadi Police was sent to Karnataka, where the accused sold the stolen gold ornaments. Accordingly, 10 grams of gold were recovered. All four policemen went after informing the senior officers. The matter took place in December and January. The jeweller initially complained by sending an email to the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Wanawadi division. On January 23, he requested the Commissioner of Police, Pune, to close the complaint by sending a letter via post. However, we have fined the four constables Rs 5,000 each for destroying the reputation of Pune Police," Shinde added.

news