SAMBALPUR: Attabira police on Wednesday arrested a 25-year-old man for allegedly posing as an advocate, forging a court order and cheating a woman’s family of `50,000 on the pretext of securing a favourable custody order. The accused is Mohammed Javed of Minarabandh Pada in Attabira.
According to police, Javed accompanied the victim K Anjum, a resident of Mandosil village in Paikmal, and her family to Attabira police station on July 20, introducing himself as an advocate. He allegedly produced a printed copy of a purported order issued by the Bargarh Family Court directing that custody of a child be handed over to the mother.
However, police grew suspicious over the authenticity of the document and verified it with the Family Court. The verification revealed that the court order was forged. Police further found that Javed was not a practising advocate but merely a graduate.
During investigation, police also learnt that the accused had allegedly collected `50,000 from Anjum’s family after promising to obtain a favourable court order in their case.
Subsequently, Attabira police registered a suo motu case under various provisions of the BNS and arrested the accused. A laptop and a mobile phone were seized from his possession. Javed was later produced in court.
Police said further investigation is underway to ascertain whether the accused had cheated any other victim using a similar modus operandi.