Noida: Six men were arrested by Noida Police on Sunday for allegedly operating a fake office under the name “International Police & Crime Investigation Bureau” to deceive people by impersonating government officials and extorting money using forged documents and fake IDs.
According to the police, the arrested accused were identified as Vibhash Chandra Adhikari (55), an arts graduate, Aragya Adhikari (30), a law graduate, Pintu Pal (27), Samapdal (29), Babul Chandra Mandal (27), Ashish Kumar (57) -- all Class 12 pass. All are originally from West Bengal and reside in Sector 70, Noida.
Shakti Mohan Awasthi, DCP (Central Noida), said that acting on a tip-off, they raided a premises in Sector 70, under the jurisdiction of Phase-III Police Station, on Saturday night, where the accused had established an office resembling that of an official investigative agency.
“The gang had set up the office 10 days ago, renting the premises on June 4, and was attempting to function as a parallel law enforcement body. The group allegedly used police-like colours and logos, displayed forged certificates purportedly from the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Ministry of Ayush, and Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, and falsely claimed affiliations with Interpol, the International Human Rights Commission, and Eurasia Pol. They even claimed to have an office in the UK,” the DCP said.
Police said the gang posed as public servants, solicited donations through their website www.intlpcrib.in, and displayed various national and international certificates online to create an appearance of legitimacy. They also maintained multiple press ID cards, “international human rights” IDs, and official-looking stamps to influence and deceive people.
Since the operation was still in its early stages, “we believe only a handful of individuals had been targeted so far, but efforts are underway to identify more victims,” Awasthi added.
Police have seized evidence, including forged IDs, ministry certificates, cheque books, ATM cards, visiting cards, signboards, mobile phones, and cash.
“A case has been registered under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) relating to forgery, cheating, impersonation, and endangering safety, as well as provisions of the Information Technology Act and the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950. All six accused have been sent to jail, and the investigation is continuing,” the DCP further said.
This comes days after the UP Special Task Force (STF) arrested a man identified as Harsh Vardhan Jain (48) from Ghaziabad on July 22. He posed as the ambassador of micronation embassies, including Westarctica, Seborga, Poulbia, and Ladonia, and ran the fake embassy from a rented house. Jain possessed forged diplomatic plates, luxury cars, and official seals.