Three held for impersonating police officers, extorting Rs 1 crore from bizman

“Khedkar and Kate planned to extort money from the victim, and they used a 78-year-old senior citizen who collected the extortion money from the victim at the direction of the accused,” said an officer on condition of anonymity.

Police said the elderly man was unaware of the extortion. Acting on the accused’s instructions, he collected a box from the complainant, not knowing that it contained cash. “This is the reason the senior citizen was not arrested, but he visits the police station for inquiry whenever required,” the officer said.

Another officer, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was unlikely that the arrested men acted alone. “It is very unlikely that two vegetable vendors and a driver would plan to extort Rs 1 crore from the victim in the name of Mumbai senior police officers. Definitely, there would be some other person behind the arrested accused, and police are trying to trace the person,” the officer said.

The case came to light after the victim’s family reported him missing. The 39-year-old businessman, who lives in Malad (east) with his wife, eight-year-old son and father, runs a gas agency. On December 15, he left home without informing anyone after being unable to meet further extortion demands. His wife then lodged a missing person complaint at the Dindoshi police station.

Police traced the businessman on December 19 and brought him back for questioning, during which he disclosed the alleged extortion.

According to the FIR, the businessman said that “one Pravin Khedekar, who used to collect donations for the Ganesh festival, called him from an unknown number saying he was in financial difficulty and needed money.” The victim transferred ₹2,100 through Google Pay. Between September and October 2024, he paid a total of Rs 10,600 to Khedekar.

A week later, the victim alleged he began receiving calls from unknown numbers, with the caller claiming to be the “joint commissioner of police, Mumbai.” The caller told him that Khedekar had killed a person under a “contract given by the businessman” and that there were proof showing money transfers linked to the murder.

The caller threatened arrest unless money was paid. The victim stated in the FIR that he received multiple calls from unknown numbers, with the caller alternately claiming to be the “joint commissioner and Mumbai police commissioner.”

Fearing arrest, the businessman allegedly paid ₹80 lakh in cash at public locations, including near Malad station and the Andheri flyover. He also transferred money online and through UPI, taking the total extortion amount to Rs 99.16 lakh.

The victim further alleged that to meet the demands, he took loans from several banks and also mortgaged his gas agency, transferring money from his bank accounts between September 2024 and December 2025.

Police said further investigation is underway to identify other persons involved in the extortion racket.