Kolkata police suspect insider role in fake CBI raid and loot in Bhowanipore, arrest 2

KOLKATA: Two of the nine men, who posed as officers of central investigating agency CBI and raided the house of Suresh Wadhwa, a businessman in Bhowanipore, were apprehended from Haridevpur near Tollygunge after police traced one of the vehicles used by the gang with the help of CCTV footage. One of the arrested frequented the Bhowanipore area.
Even as efforts are on to trace the rest, police have a strong suspicion of insider involvement in the case. TOI has learnt that the engagement ceremony of businessman Suresh Wadhwa's daughter is scheduled on February 10, 2023, and probably that is the reason why there was cash and jewellery worth Rs 38 lakh in the Rupchand Mukherjee Lane house. Current and former employees are being questioned.
TOI has also learnt that the men could access the building fortified by strong iron gates by storming in when the milkman arrived at his usual time of 7.45am. The milkman and the guard were then held hostage on the ground floor by two men while seven others went up and knocked on Wadhwas' door before barging in after it was unlocked. Inside, the men seemed to know about the general layout of the house.
What is also curious is that though the Wadhwa family has two dogs, a beagle and a Labrador, they did not bark when the men entered. Police are checking if at least one of the miscreants had befriended the dogs when they were taken out for walks.
The two arrested are Ranjan Chowdhury (48) and Santu Molla (34), both from Haridevpur. They have been taken into 10 days' police custody after court production. One of the three vehicles used in the operation was also seized.
Ranjan, who wore a blazer, had introduced himself as a CBI officer who had come from Delhi. Joint commissioner Sankha Subhra Chakraborty, who is leading the probe, said Ranjan owned a car rental company. He claimed he had Tollywood connections and had even invested in a Bengali film that had bombed, resulting in losses. Santu is an associate of Ranjan.
Another cop said Ranjan claimed he had been paid to get the car, instructed to wear a blazer and pose as an officer. Though police have found that he visited Bhowanipore frequently, no link to the Wadhwa family has yet been established.
Piecing together the sequence of events, police said that the accused had arrived in three cars, all bearing fake police stickers. They entered when the milkman was about to give milk pouches to the guard. While two men kept a watch on the guard and the milkman, the others went up and knocked on Wadhwas' door. They then barged in to conduct a raid following "detection of GST evasion on the part of Wadhwas". The raid, they said, had been ordered from Delhi and produced a fake warrant that was stamped and signed.
During the 90-minute operation, family members were told to lie low and not attract attention of outsiders. They took cash and jewellery and walked away.