Cuttack: Mangalabag police on Tuesday arrested four persons for allegedly duping two cops of Rs 9.8 lakh.
The accused have been identified as Etu alias Manoj Patnaik (38) of Biridi, Jagatsinghpur district; Saroj alias Sarojkanta Jena (45) of Ramachandrapur, Bari, Jajpur district; Rajesh Kumar Khuntia (30) of Kishorenagar, Cuttack district; and Susanta Kumar Sethi (37) of Kishorenagar, Cuttack district, police said.
Rs 1.30 lakh in cash, a car and two gold necklaces have been seized from the possession of the accused persons, police added.
According to the police Manas Kumar Barik and his friend Saroj Kumar Panda work as constables with the 6th battalion of the OSAP.
Police said on the basis of a report filed by Manoj Kumar Barik a case was registered at Managalabag police station on August 2 (Wednesday) under sections 420, 403, 120B and 34 of IPC.
Of the four accused Sarojkanta Jena who acted as the mediator took Rs 9.8 lakh from constables Barik and Panda by offering them to pay 20 percent extra, informed Cuttack Addl DCP Anil Mishra.
The Addl DCP said that Jena who used to move around in the OSAP 6th Battalion area identifying himself as Special Police first befriended Barik and Panda and then offered to return them 20% extra on whatever cash they paid him.
The Addl DCP said that Jena and his three associates came in a car near the Maritime Museum where Barik and Panda after withdrawing Rs 9.8 lakh handed over the money to them after being promised to be paid 20 percent extra.
However, Jena and his associates cheated Barik and Panda and did not pay them.
During the course of the investigation, the police have come to know that these four accused have cheated lakhs of rupees from several people in Dhenkanal, Nayapalli, Pahala and Sundargarh.
“They will be forwarded to court today. We have seized the car used by them, Rs 1.30 lakh cash and gold necklace from their possession,” the Addl DCP said.
