Man posing as IAF officer dupes Gujarat woman of Rs 1.95 lakh with job promise

A Rajkot woman fell victim to a man posing as an Indian Air Force officer on Instagram who took Rs 1.95 lakh from her on the promise of a job in the Air Force's Suryakiran team. Police have arrested the accused and warned people not to pay anyone for government jobs.

In Short

• Accused Pratik Bhardwaj arrested, runs private travel agency
• Bhardwaj posed as Suryakiran team Wing Commander to gain trust
• Victim approached police after job promise failed and more money was demanded

A woman from Rajkot, Gujarat was duped of Rs 1.95 lakh by a man who posed as an Indian Air Force officer on Instagram and promised to get her a job in the Suryakiran aerobatic team, police said. Surya Kiran (Rays of the Sun) is an aerobatics demonstration team of the Indian Air Force. The accused used photos and videos of the team on a fake Instagram account to convince people of his false identity.

The accused, identified as Pratik Bhardwaj, was arrested by the University Police Station in Rajkot. Police said Bhardwaj runs a private travel agency and had been misleading people by claiming to be an Air Force officer.

HOW THE WOMAN WAS TRAPPED

According to Rajkot ACP B J Chaudhary, the woman filed an e-FIR on September 4 against Bhardwaj.

The woman, who lives on Rajkot-Jamnagar Road and works as a systems engineer at a private company in Gandhinagar, followed an Instagram account named "Pratik7539".

On May 17, Bhardwaj messaged her through Instagram. He introduced himself as a Wing Commander in the flying branch of the Indian Air Force's Suryakiran team and claimed that he was posted in Karnataka.

Police said Bhardwaj had created an Instagram account where he uploaded various photographs and videos of the Suryakiran team. He used the content to make his claim of being an Air Force officer appear genuine before befriending the woman.

After learning that she wanted to join the Air Force, Bhardwaj assured her that he could help her secure a job.

RS 1.95 LAKH TAKEN ON PROMISE OF JOB

Police said Bhardwaj told the woman that the job could be secured through monetary transactions and took a total of Rs 1.95 lakh from her through different means.

However, after she paid the money, the promised job did not materialise. Bhardwaj demanded more money from her, following which the woman realised that she had been cheated and approached the police.

During the investigation, police traced Bhardwaj to a rented house near Nanavati Chowk in Rajkot and arrested him.

POLICE CHECKING IF OTHERS WERE CHEATED

Police said preliminary investigation has revealed that Bhardwaj had previously been booked in two cases related to prohibition.

The police have secured his remand and are now investigating whether he allegedly used the same method to target other people.

ACP B J Chaudhary appealed to the public not to pay money to anyone claiming that a government job can be secured through personal contacts or social media.

"No government job can be obtained by paying money," the ACP said, urging people not to hand over money to anyone promising a government job.

- Ends