Fraudster in police uniform: Stalking and sexual exploitation series ends with arrest

The accused recently landed in the police's net in Bareilly on Tuesday when he sexually exploited a policewoman stationed in Bareilly, ₹6.30 lakh from her and bought a four-wheeler worth ₹28 lakh with their documents.

Bareilly city deputy superintendent of police (ASP) Rahul Bhati said the accused is Rajan Verma, 30, a resident of Sadar in Lakhimpur Kheri district. He said the accused was arrested for repeatedly raping the same woman on the pretext of marriage by posing as a police officer. He said the Bareilly police officer had filed a complaint of rape under sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Senior police officials said that the accused's social media profile was full of photos of him in a police uniform worn by police officers during their farewell parade, along with police vehicles and other police officers following him on the platforms, which could easily convince people that he was a police officer.

They said he even married a policewoman by posing as a police officer in the office of an Additional Director General (ADG) with the rank of senior IPS officer in Lucknow.

They said the accused had cheated policewomen and others under the pretext of transfers and postings through his connections while he was posted in the ADG office. Investigations revealed that the accused amassed huge wealth and had ₹1.5 crore through gambling. They said the accused even owned a high-end SUV, two more quad bikes and a racing bike.

“The woman police officer posted in Bareilly has filed a complaint of repeated rape under IPC section 376 (2)N and IPC section 323 for intentional assault, 420 for cheating, 467 for forgery of document to claim ownership of any property, 468 for using forged document for the purpose of cheating, 471 for using forged document as genuine and 504 and 506 for insult and criminal intimidation respectively, on July 13 at the city police station premises,” Bhati said.

Another police officer privy to the case said Verma first came in contact with a police officer posted in the Special Operation Group (SOG) in Lakhimpur Kheri and he learnt all police tactics while spending time with him in 2019 and 2020. He said he even committed fraud and extortion by posing as a police officer at the behest of the SOG officer.

“He contacted a policewoman and married her posing as a policewoman, but separated after two years when she came to know about his reality. The couple was also arrested by the Lakhimpur Kheri police on November 15, 2022 in connection with an FIR filed by another policewoman, Gayatri Verma, on charges of cheating.

The accused's divorced wife is living separately after being released from jail on bail and is still suspended in the same case. But he continued to commit fraud and stalk other policewomen, especially those with the surname Verma, as they were easily convinced to be of the same caste as him,” the officer said, explaining his modus operandi.

He said Verma's luxury tour continued despite his being arrested twice on April 24, 2021 in Moradabad and in 2022 in Lakhimpur as many of his victims did not turn up to file a complaint to avoid humiliation. Yet, five criminal cases are pending against him, including two in Lakhimpur Kheri and one case each in Moradabad, Shravasti and Bareilly. He said the most recent case is Bareilly, where he was arrested and sent to jail on Tuesday.