On Monday, 26th August, the Bandra police in Maharashtra’s Mumbai district nabbed a man for tricking families of jail inmates by acting as BJP MLA Ashish Shelar’s assistant (PA). According to the reports, the accused, Amin Irfan Bendrekar, 24, allegedly approached lawyers and obtained information on their clients before extorting money by offering assistance from the Maharashtra government.
According to the Bandra police, Advocates Vijendra Roy and Yasmin Wankhede, among others, approached Shelar and informed him that they had been contacted by one Sharma, who pretended to be the MLA’s PA and Mantralaya secretary. They also stated that the impostor indicated that the administration intended to release certain prisoners owing to congestion in cells.
Maharashtra | Accused Amin Irfan Bendrekar arrested for duping relatives of jail inmates, posing as BJP MLA Ashish Shelar's PA. The accused allegedly contacted lawyers obtained information about their clients and extorted money by promising aid from the state government. Further…
— ANI (@ANI) August 26, 2024
On this foundation, he asked advocates for information about their jailed clients and their relatives. The victims said that they trusted the con because he sounded like Shelar’s PA and supplied the information.
Bendrekar then allegedly reached the relative of an accused, disguised as Shelar’s PA, telling them that the convict had fallen in prison and needed money for medical treatment. According to the FIR, a relative paid Rs 8,000 to the accused through their lawyer, Arfin, and Bendrekar employed a similar strategy to deceive others. However, the lawyers grew increasingly suspicious and eventually approached Shelar.
A case initially was brought against an anonymous individual under sections 204 (impersonation of a public servant), 318 (cheating), 319 (cheating by impersonation), and 356 (defamation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, based on the charge of MLA’s actual PA, Navnath Satpute. However, the accused was identified as Amin Irfan Bendrekar and arrested.
Further investigations are underway.
