Police in Meerut have arrested five individuals, including two Uttar Pradesh Police constables and a history-sheeter, for allegedly running a fraudulent currency exchange scheme targeting local traders. The arrested constables, Ashish Kumar and Prashnachit Anand of the 2025 batch, were detained alongside Sajid, Faizan, and Abhishek following an operation by the Bhawani Nagar police late Monday night. Investigators revealed that the network duped victims by offering high volumes of counterfeit notes in exchange for genuine currency, only to substitute the funds with bundles of plain paper slips once cash was exchanged.
Elaborate Confidence Scheme Lured Victims With Real Notes
The gang operated a calculated confidence trick designed to disarm suspicion through small initial exchanges. According to investigators, Sajid supplied victims with genuine banknotes in denominations of ₹500, ₹200, and ₹100 while falsely claiming the money was high-grade counterfeit stock. When traders successfully spent the legitimate notes in open markets without detection, they were convinced that the ring had access to usable counterfeit supplies, prompting them to negotiate significantly larger transactions.
During discussions for substantial sums, the terms fluctuated between lucrative returns and smaller trade ratios, with Sajid offering up to ₹1 lakh in fake notes for ₹30,000 in cash, or ₹7,000 to ₹8,000 for ₹10,000. However, the deliveries consisted almost entirely of paper cuttings cut to currency dimensions. The gang concealed the deception by placing genuine banknotes at the top and bottom of each bundle, ensuring the packages appeared legitimate from the outside until buyers unpacked them at home.
Uniformed Constables Staged Raids to Extort Cash
The two implicated constables actively intervened at the point of exchange to complete the extortion. Ashish Kumar and Prashnachit Anand allegedly arrived at the delivery locations just as the money changed hands, claiming they were confiscating both the genuine cash and the purported counterfeit currency for official station records. The officers then threatened the traders with immediate prosecution and imprisonment for dealing in counterfeit notes, leaving the victims fearful of legal fallout and unable to resist having their legitimate funds seized.
Senior Police Step In Following Alleged Cover-Up Attempt
Bhawani Nagar police apprehended all five suspects late Monday night, recovering 33 rigged currency bundles composed of ₹500, ₹200, and ₹100 notes, which contained real bills on the exterior and cut paper inside. Officers also seized an additional ₹25,000 in genuine currency. The case drew departmental attention after reports emerged of an initial bid to suppress the matter locally, prompting senior police officials to intervene and mandate criminal cases against the officers and their associates. Both constables have been placed under formal suspension while investigators review mobile phones, financial trails, and call logs to identify broader connections to the network.
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