New Delhi: After nine years on the run, Delhi Police’s Crime Branch arrested a man for posing as an IPS officer with the Intelligence Bureau to cheat and intimidate people. The man, identified as Vimal Bhat, was apprehended from the Patparganj Industrial Area in east Delhi on Thursday. Bhat, a resident of Raj Nagar Extension in Ghaziabad, absconded in a 2017 case registered at Dwarka South police station. During the trial, a court declared him a proclaimed offender. The arrest followed a tip-off received by police. “The team was deployed in the Patparganj Industrial Area after being informed that Bhat would arrive there. At 3.25pm, an informer pointed out Bhat as he approached from the industrial area side, following which he was arrested,” DCP (Crime) Vikram Singh said. He used a fake identity card and moved around in a vehicle fitted with “POLICE” stickers, a siren and a loud hailer, creating an impression of authority to mislead and instil fear among people. Police said several items were earlier seized from his possession, including a fake Intelligence Bureau identity card, a walkie-talkie, police-style accessories, a siren, a loud hailer and documents bearing forged govt credentials. An identity card purportedly issued by the ministry of home affairs was also seized. Further probe revealed that Bhat is also involved in multiple other cases across jurisdictions. These include a case under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act in Udhampur, a 2020 case under Sections 279 (rash or negligent driving or riding on a public way) and 304 (Culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of IPC at Nawabad police station, and a 2018 Naraina police station case involving charges of cheating, impersonation and other criminal offences.
