Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Apr 26: Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) recently arrested Abhijeet Patil, sub-divisional police officer of Phaltan for 'kidnapping a lawyer, robbing him and destroying evidence'. The accused is in judicial custody and was charged for demanding Rs 2.5 lac from Pune lawyer, Rajkumar Chavan.

As per TOI report, the Pune based lawyer Rajkumar Chavan represented three clients who make gold coins and had invested Rs 1.25 crore with a couple. When the couple did not pay them returns, Chavan’s clients lodged a complaint with Khandala police in January 2019. Patil was investigating the case.

The FIR stated that Patil contacted Chavan with an offer. He said the couple was willing to return Rs 1.1 crore as settlement. Patil gave Chavan two demand drafts of Rs 8 lac each that the couple issued, but allegedly demanded a bribe. Only after paying it would Chavan get the other demand drafts and cheques. So Chavan approached the ACB, as reported in TOI.

Since April 17, whenever Chavan met Patil, he recorded their conversation using a digital recorder pinned to his shirt by ACB sleuths. When Patil realized that Chavan was recording their conversation, he searched the lawyer in his official vehicle and snatched his phone and recorder, before abandoning him on the road.

After Patil left, Chavan noticed ACB officers tailing him, so he narrated the incident to them. Chavan’s broken phone was recovered along with torn cheques and documents. The recorder could not be found. Patil was held, but hospitalised after complaining of ill health.