In yet another case of fight against corruption, a team of anti-corruption bureau (ACB) arrested an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) while he was taking bribe from a businessman near Sidhgora thana on Tuesday afternoon. The ASI was identified as Vashudev Mehta, posted at Sidhgora.
The seven-member ACB team, which was being led Deputy Superintendent of Police, Amar Pandey recovered `18,000, an amount the accused police officer had taken from the businessman Mohammed Sheikh Ayub, who is a resident of Rairangpur in adjoining Mayurbhanj district of Odisha.
According to Pandey, Ayub who is a businessman had on August 11 sold his SUV (JH05J-05301) sold to Sheikh Usman, a resident of Badampahad also in Mayurbhanj district and got the ownership transferred in the latter's name same month.
However, the police in Jamshedpur had allegedly in September last found the SUV No JH05J-05301 indulged in some crime in Sidhgora locality and had asked the Sidhgora police to trace the vehicle.
Police could not locate the SUV, but found a man, Noor Alam, who had become a witness during the transfer of ownership of the SUV No JH05J-05301. As Alam was a resident of Golmuri area of the city, the Sidhgora police summoned him and asked him to send Ayub to the Sidhgora in connection with the detection of the crime as reported by the police control room in September.
The DSP (ACB) said as Ayub went to Sidhgora police station, Mehta who is the investigating officer seized his car and also the papers related to the car, claiming that the SUV which he sold out to Usman must be handed over to police as that vehicle was indulged in some crime.
"Though he made pleas that he had no connection with the SUV No JH05J-05301 as he has already sold it out to Usman, Mehta insisted on to surrender the SUV. Then Ayub struck a deal for get rid of the situation. On offering bribe, Mehta (58) demanded Rs 25,000 for setting him free from the matter. The deal was finalised at Rs 18,000. After the deal was final, Ayub lodged a complaint with the ACB's office in Sonari. After he pointed out the place of transaction of the bribe, we set up a team and nabbed the ASI just after he had taken `18,000 from Ayub," elaborated the DSP Pandey.
Pandey said for currency notes of `2,000 denomination, they had noted down the number of all the nine notes. As Ayub paid the bribe, they stopped Mehta and searched his pocket. They matched with the currency notes' number that the complainant had given us. As the numbers matched with that of the currency notes, they immediately took Mehta under custody. He said the arrested ASI will be sent to ACB court in Chaibasa on Wednesday.