In a dramatic turn of events, Nagpur City Police have successfully dismantled an elaborate extortion racket, arresting five individuals who allegedly plotted to extort a staggering Rs 50 lakh from a senior government officer. The police revealed that the prime accused was driven by financial desperation to arrange his sister's marriage and took inspiration from a popular film starring superstar Rajnikanth to execute his plan.
The Accused and Their Target
The police have identified the arrested individuals as mastermind Atul Tagde (30) from Deori in Gondia, Hindustani Ramteke (27) from Chandrapur, Nikhil Nandekar (28) from Gadchiroli, Rahul Patle (21) from Gondia, and Preksha Kamble (30), who was recently living in Bhandara. Significantly, Kamble was a key insider, working as a surveyor in the Land Records Department and was a subordinate of the targeted officer.
The gang specifically targeted Prakash Dhage, 45, the Deputy Superintendent in the Land Records Department, Bhandara, who resides in Sadguru Nagar, Nagpur. The police stated that Kamble, from within the department, tipped off the gang about the possibility of extorting a large sum from Dhage.
Modus Operandi: From Intimidation to a Trap
The accused closely monitored Dhage's daily commute between Nagpur and his Bhandara office. The plot escalated on December 17 last year, when assailants blocked Dhage's car on the Velahari Bypass Road around 9 pm. They smashed the car's windows but fled when Dhage shouted for help.
The intimidation continued two days later with an anonymous phone call. The caller threatened Dhage, stating, "We have a 20 lakh supari to kill you. Pay 50 lakh & we'll call it off." The caller then instructed Dhage to deliver the money to a dhaba on the Nagpur-Jabalpur Ring Road. Acting promptly, Dhage informed the Beltarodi Police, who set up an elaborate trap using a bag filled with fake currency notes. In the darkness, the accused grabbed the bag and fled.
Undeterred, the gang made another threatening call on December 29, demanding the ransom and warning of harm to Dhage and his family. They instructed him to go to a mall at Variety Square and then take an auto-rickshaw towards Wadi. Undercover police, led by Zonal DCP Rashmitha Rao, accompanied Dhage. However, the suspects sensed the trap and escaped once again.
The Crackdown and Arrests
Following the second failed trap, DCP Rao tightened security around Dhage's residence. A dedicated police team then employed technical surveillance, analysis of CCTV footage, and mobile phone tracing to track down the culprits.
On January 3, the police cracked the case and arrested all five accused. "We formed five teams and dispatched them to Chandrapur, Gondia, Gadchiroli and Bhandara," said DCP Rao, adding that none of the accused had any prior criminal record.
Investigations revealed that mastermind Atul Tagde, who owned a mobile repair shop in Gondia where Hindustani Ramteke worked, roped in his former ITI classmates, Nikhil Nandekar and Rahul Patle, to execute the plan. Police recovered six mobile phones used in the crime. It was found that Nikhil procured a SIM card from Chandrapur by paying Rs 2,500 to a liquor addict, while Tagde used an old SIM from Karnataka to make the extortion calls.
The successful operation was led by DCP Rashmitha Rao with key contributions from ACP Narendra Hiware, senior PI Mukund Kawade, API Rameshwar Kandure, PSI Amol Shinde, Kishore Malokar, cyber PSI Vivek Jingre, and the entire Beltarodi police team.
