19-05-2025
Hotel employee posing as Indian Air Force officer to ‘impress women' arrested in Pune
The Military Intelligence (MI) Unit of the Indian Army's Southern Command and the Pune city police Sunday arrested a hotel employee posing as an Indian Air Force (IAF) officer to 'impress women' from the city's Kharadi area during a joint operation.
The police have identified the accused as Gauravkumar Dineshkumar, a resident of Varad Vinayak Apartment in Kharadi, and a native of Uttar Pradesh. A First Information Report (FIR) was lodged against him at Kharadi police station under section 168 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, for wearing a military uniform illegally.
According to the police, the accused, a college dropout, had been allegedly posting his photographs in an IAF uniform on social media to cheat people.
Acting on a tip-off from MI, a police team led by Assistant Inspector Saheba Pote nabbed the accused at his residence in Kharadi. The team seized IAF badges in Hindi and English, another badge stating 'Proud Air Force Wife', an Air Force jacket and t-shirts, an Army cap, and Air Force shoes from the accused.
The accused allegedly burnt two Air Force uniforms about a month before, as stated in the FIR.
Sources said the accused was arrested by the Delhi Police in a similar case in 2022, when he was nabbed in the Air Force station area of the national capital. 'He was found wearing the Air Force shoes in the wrong manner. So, when the Air Force authorities questioned him, it was learnt that he was a conman, and was then placed under arrest by the Delhi Police. Later, he was granted bail,' said a source.
The police said the accused then shifted to Pune, and started working at a hotel in the city. Sources said he allegedly bought two IAF uniforms from a tailor in the Lohegaon area. The police said he allegedly posted his images on social media to impress women, and is also suspected to have participated in some Army event posing as an Air Force officer.
The police said further investigation is underway.
Chandan Haygunde is an assistant editor with The Indian Express with 15 + years of experience in covering issues related to Crime, Courts, National Security and Human Rights. He has been associated with The Indian Express since 2007.
Chandan has done investigative reporting on incidents of terrorism, left wing extremism, espionage cases, wildlife crimes, narcotics racket, cyber crimes and sensational murder cases in Pune and other parts of Maharashtra.
While working on the 'Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) Fellowship on Tigers, Tiger Habitats and Conservation' in 2012, he reported extensively on the illegal activities in the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra. He has done in-depth reporting on the cases related to the Koregaon Bhima violence in Pune and hearings of the 'Koregaon Bhima Commission of Inquiry'. ... Read More
