AHMEDABAD: The Vadodara City Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Gujarat Police on Tuesday arrested a 38-year-old man who was posing as a police sub-inspector from a high-end bungalow in the Tandalja area of Vadodara.
The accused, identified as Mobin Sodagar, was arrested following a tip-off. During the raid, police seized fake PSI identity cards, police uniforms, official seals, multiple identity documents, vehicles without number plates, and an air gun, pointing to a well-planned impersonation racket that may have duped several people, particularly in land-related dealings.
According to Vadodara SOG Police Inspector S.D. Ratda, “Acting on a tipoff, officials arrested a man who had been roaming the city with the authority of a police sub-inspector without ever wearing the badge legally.”
When the SOG team reached the bungalow, the door was opened by the accused’s wife. Asked about her husband, she replied that he was at home, unaware that the impersonation would soon be exposed. Inside the house, police found Sodagar, while two four-wheelers parked inside the compound raised further suspicion as both vehicles did not have number plates.
On checking the vehicles, officers recovered police khaki uniforms, fake PSI ID cards, and official-looking seals stored inside. Investigators said Sodagar had been posing as a police sub-inspector to interfere in road-related issues and land transactions, using intimidation, fake authority, and forged documents to influence people. He allegedly carried duplicate PSI ID cards with his name and photograph and kept police uniforms prominently displayed to appear authentic.
Police said the scale of the deception was significant. The seized items included a police sub-inspector uniform and two fake PSI ID cards, an air gun, 22 identity documents including Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, voter IDs, driving licences, DCBLT cards and vehicle RC books in different names, 22 official seals and coins of government, semi-government and private offices including seals linked to SIT Gandhinagar SP, three income certificates, one laptop, three mobile phones, Rs 1,000 in cash, and two four-wheelers worth about Rs 26.42 lakh.
Following the seizure, the SOG registered a case at JP Road Police Station for cheating, forgery, impersonation, and criminal breach of trust, as the accused had falsely projected himself as a government servant.
Police said further interrogation of the accused is likely to reveal how long the racket was operating, who all were cheated, and whether others were involved.