3 arrested for posing as BSES officials, 'extorting' money in Delhi: Police

Shammi Chadha (62), a property dealer, Dilesh Kumar Paras (59), a momo seller, and Shakil Ahmen (46) were arrested after call records and footage from CCTV cameras were analysed, officials said.

New Delhi: A momo seller and a property dealer were among three people arrested here for allegedly trying to "extort" money from a family by posing as officials of power discom BSES, police officials said on Sunday.

They had threatened the Maharani Bagh-based family saying the BSES would file a case against them for using a residential power connection for commercial purposes, the officials said. The accused had asked the family to pay a "fine" of Rs 12 lakh, they said and added that this was reported to police on July 10 and a probe was initiated.

Shammi Chadha (62), a property dealer, Dilesh Kumar Paras (59), a momo seller, and Shakil Ahmen (46) were arrested after call records and footage from CCTV cameras were analysed, the officials said.

Penal sections related to extortion were added to the case during the course of investigation, a senior officer said. The officer said in the footage of a CCTV camera, the accused were seen moving around the house of the complainant in the Maharani Bagh area in southeast Delhi on a motorcycle. The owner of the motorcycle, Paras, was tracked down and his call records were analysed, the officer said and added that he was later arrested.

The officer said after he was interrogated, Chadha and Ahmen were also apprehended.

In the past, they were employees of a private company that used to work for the BSES to recover pending electricity bills. The accused were aware of the discoms workings, the officer said.

The officials said posing as BSES officials, they used to target people, including owners of under-construction sites, by threatening of filing cases against them for using residential power connection for commercial purposes. They extorted money saying these were fines, the officials added.

"They have extorted money from many people but these incidents were not reported," the police officer said.