A 21-year-old postgraduate student had a harrowing encounter while returning home in an autorickshaw, as a scammer attempted to extort ₹50,000 from her, claiming she was in possession of an e-cigarette. Thanks to her swift action and a timely complaint, the MIDC police apprehended the three suspects, who were revealed to be clean-up marshals for the BMC, within just 12 hours.
The incident occurred around 4:30 PM on October 14, when Dilshad Khan (34) and his accomplices, Simranjit Singh and Rafique Chaudhari, followed the student, A.S. Sen, from her college and intercepted her autorickshaw near Holy Family Church. The ordeal lasted over 15 minutes as Khan pressured Sen to withdraw cash. When she explained her lack of funds, he demanded that she ask friends for a transfer of ₹10,000. Instead, Sen contacted her brother, who advised her to record the encounter.
Sen’s video, which has since gone viral with over 1,500 views, captures her assertively describing the situation and her location, as Khan becomes increasingly agitated and ultimately exits the vehicle.
“CCTV footage showed the suspects making a payment at a gas station via GPay, which facilitated our investigation,” said a police official. Khan, who had a prior molestation charge from 2022, along with his accomplices, is under scrutiny for potentially committing similar crimes in the past. Police confirmed that all three were employed as contract clean-up marshals with the BMC.
