Maharashtra man posing as Navy officer, 2 aides arrested in job fraud

Pune Rural police Tuesday arrested a man posing as an Indian Navy officer and his two aides for attempting to cheat people on false assurances of jobs at INS Shivaji, the Lonavala-based training station of Indian Navy.

The police have identified the accused persons as Akash Kashinath Dange, 28, Jayraj Anandrao Chavan, 26, and Abhay Kakade, 26, all hailing from Phaltan in Satara district. The sleuths recovered a car, Navy uniform and other items from Dange’s possession.

The police took action based on the complaint of advocate Aishwarya Lendghar, a resident of Bangarwadi in Lonavala, who works as a notary.

The police said in a statement that Dange, wearing the uniform of a Navy Officer, went to Lengdhar’s office in September 2022 for making an affidavit and later became a frequent visitor. Claiming to be a commandant rank officer in the Navy, he assured jobs to 19 people, including Lendghar’s relatives, at the INS Shivaji in Lonavala and demanded Rs 3 lakh per person, they said.