The Mumbai police have cautioned citizens about a new kind of cyber crime where fraudsters are using the edited picture of an identity card of a senior police officer to threaten and extort people. A first information report (FIR) was filed at Matunga police station regarding one such case in November 2022. The scamsters are still active, and no arrests have been made in that case.

On November 18, 2022, Deepak Chavhan, senior inspector of Matunga police received a call from a friend saying an unknown person was using his picture along with the identity Naresh Gupta Banarjee, police sub inspector from Andheri police station. The edited ID card was allegedly used to extort money from people. The victims were threatened with narcotics and money laundering cases against them.

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“As soon as the information came to my notice, we registered an FIR against unknown persons under Indian Penal Code Sections 419 (cheating by personation), 465 (forgery), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged 1[document or electronic record]) and relevant sections of IT Act,” Chavhan said.

The fraudsters have been continuing to use the forged ID for extortion. On Wednesday evening, Mumbai police shared a screenshot alerting citizens about the fraudster on Twitter. “It has come to light that someone is using a fake Mumbai Police ID card to commit online fraud. Mumbai Police officers do not use their IDs to prove their identity. If you or someone you know come across such claims, tweet to us or visit your nearest police station,” the Mumbai Police’s tweet read.

The Matunga police are among the leading police stations in solving cyber fraud. However, it is still probing the case, and no arrests have been made. The police have urged citizens to register FIRs if they have received similar threats.

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