Mumbai: Fake cops visit woman purchasing gold from jeweller at home, rob them both

MUMBAI: A 30-year-old woman who had invited a jeweller to her flat to discuss options for purchasing gold coins received four unusual visitors around the same time - two men and two women. The visitors introduced themselves as police personnel from social service branch and told her she would be booked for prostitution. Later, the four searched her flat and left with cash and gold rings. They also took away the cash that the jeweler was carrying, collectively around Rs 6 lakh.
Two days later, the police arrested a man and a woman who had posed as police personnel during the robbery.
The incident took place in a residential building on Monday evening in the VP Road area. "The woman, who stays with her two kids, had called a jeweller at home since she wanted to buy two gold coins. While the jeweller was showing her gold coins, the doorbell rang. The woman opened the door and found four people. They entered the flat and introduced themselves as police personnel from the social service branch (which is a part of the Mumbai crime branch)," said a police officer.
The four started threatening the woman that they had specific information about her involvement in prostitution, and that she would be booked in a case.
The woman pleaded innocence, but the four began searching her flat. "They found four gold rings and some cash kept in a cupboard. They also checked the jeweller's bag that had Rs 4 lakh cash in it. They took the jeweller's money, cash, gold from the woman's cupboard and left," said a police officer.
Panicked, the woman approached the V P Road police. An FIR for cheating, impersonation and trespass was lodged at the V P Road police station. Cops found the accused's images in CCTV. "An informer identified one of the women. A police team reached Goregaon and detained the woman from her residence," said a police officer.
An investigator said while four of them went to the flat, a woman, the fifth accused, waited outside the building. Police recovered cash and gold valued at Rs 2.25 lakh. "The woman, who was waiting outside was known to the complainant and was owed around Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 by the complainant, who allegedly delayed returning the sum. This led to the accused plotting the robbery," said an officer.