Thane: 6-member gang from K'taka held for duping people by seeking money to get `funds lying with RBI’ released

The crime branch of Thane police in Maharashtra on Saturday claimed to have busted a gang which allegedly cheated people by claiming that they needed money to get huge amounts of funds `stuck’ with the Reserve Bank of India released.

Acting on a tip-off, a police team raided a lodge near the Thane railway station on Friday and nabbed six persons including a woman, all hailing from Karnataka, for cheating and forgery among other offences, said police inspector Krishna Kokni.

The gang members would approach gullible persons and claim that they had sold copper iridium, a rare alloy `needed at nuclear plants’ to a foreign firm for thousands of crores of rupees, but the proceeds have been held up by the RBI.

They need some money to get this huge amount released, they would tell the potential victim, offering a share in the `profit’ if he or she lent them money.

To convince the person, they showed fabricated documents bearing the logos or seals of key institutions including the RBI, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) as well as the Income Tax department.