Navi Mumbai: ACB Arrests Assistant Police Inspector and Constable in Kharghar Bribery Case

Navi Mumbai, 6th June 2024: In Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) took into custody an assistant police inspector (API) and a police constable on Wednesday for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 40,000. The bribe was part of an initial demand of Rs 1 lakh, aimed at facilitating non-objection to bail for a defendant involved in a cheating and forgery case.

The arrested API, identified as Sagar Kumar Takle (37), was the investigating officer in the case. Alongside constable Pragynesh Narendra Kothekar (42), who served as the court clerk, Takle purportedly demanded the sum from the complainant to expedite proceedings related to the complainant’s uncle. The uncle had been apprehended by the Koparkhairane police in April on charges of cheating and forgery.

According to an ACB official, Takle solicited the bribe to cooperate with the arrested man’s family. The complainant, seeking bail for his uncle, was coerced into providing the money to prevent objections to the bail application.

Following negotiations, the demanded amount was reduced to Rs 40,000. The complainant, alarmed by the demands, approached the ACB, prompting an investigation and the subsequent setting up of a trap. Takle instructed Kothekar to rendezvous with the complainant in Kharghar to receive the bribe. Kothekar was apprehended by law enforcement while accepting the bribe, leading to the subsequent arrest of Takle.