In a sensational case of impersonation and robbery, a gang of fraudsters posing as police officers raided the home of a South Mumbai resident, looting cash and valuables worth lakhs. The Azad Maidan Police have arrested four individuals, including three women, who allegedly orchestrated the fake raid. The accused reportedly threatened the victim with false charges and extorted a significant amount of money and a gold chain.
According to police sources, the victim, Nishilkumar Mabja, a resident of South Mumbai, filed a complaint on the evening of July 27. The complaint states that seven women and one man, led by the prime accused, Farha, entered his house under the pretext of conducting an official police raid. The gang physically assaulted Mabja and threatened to frame him in a fabricated criminal case unless he paid them ₹2 lakh.
During the incident, the fraudsters forcibly took a gold chain and locket weighing approximately 40 grams, with an estimated value of ₹3.5 lakh. The victim was also coerced into transferring ₹90,000 via the mobile payment app PhonePe to an account registered in the name of Fatima Yusuf Khan, one of the accused.
Acting on the complaint, the Azad Maidan Police initiated an investigation, leveraging technical surveillance and intelligence inputs. A joint operation with the Dindoshi Police led to the arrest of four key suspects from Shivshahi Colony in Goregaon (East). The arrested individuals have been identified as Amina alias Farha Sajid Khan (41), Fatima Yusuf alias Afsar Khan (40), Sabina Zarnan Qureshi (36), and Rafiq Mehmood Shaikh (40).
The police confirmed that preliminary interrogation has established the direct involvement of the arrested quartet in the crime. However, two other accomplices remain at large, and police are actively working to trace their whereabouts.
Authorities have not yet recovered the stolen gold chain. The investigation is also focused on tracking the flow of the extorted ₹90,000, which may have been transferred to multiple bank accounts.
During a court hearing, the investigating officer requested police custody of the accused, citing the need for custodial interrogation to recover the stolen items, identify the other co-accused, and ascertain if the gang is involved in similar crimes across the city. The audacious nature of the crime has sent shockwaves through the local community, highlighting a new and alarming modus operandi used by criminals.