70-year-old UP man booked for repeatedly bailing out hardened criminals for money

Bhadohi: A 70-year-old man has been booked here for allegedly operating as a professional surety, offering bail for serious offenders across Bhadohi, Prayagraj and Varanasi in exchange for money, police said on Monday.

According to a senior police officer, Rajendra Prasad, from Daropur locality in City Kotwali area, had recently applied to stand surety in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashok Kumar Mishra for Shamim Ansari -- an accused lodged in jail under serious charges, including attempt to murder.

When the application was filed, the magistrate sought verification of Prasad's credentials from City Kotwali police.

During the verification, Inspector-in-Charge Sachidanand Pandey said it was found that Prasad had earlier stood surety for at least 10 criminals charged with grave offences such as murder, robbery, and rape across multiple districts, despite having no personal connection with them.

The officer added that this was the 11th such instance, where Prasad had submitted documents in court to secure bail for a serious offender without any direct relation to the accused.

Upon discovering the pattern, police submitted a report to the court on Saturday, recommending cancellation of his verification.

Based on a complaint lodged by Santosh Kumar Singh, in-charge of the Nayi Bazar police outpost, a case has been registered under Section 318 (cheating) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) against Prasad, Pandey said.

Further investigation is underway, he added.