Panvel youth held with ‘fake’ rubber stamps

Navi Mumbai: A 22-year-old youth, Vijay Prange, was arrested in Panvel on Saturday for allegedly possessing and using fake stamps belonging to high-ranking officials in the tehsildar’s office.On Saturday afternoon, acting on a tip-off, the police laid a trap and nabbed Parange. “We were waiting for him near the tehsildar’s office. We found on him four fake stamps comprising those of Panvel executive magistrate, tehsildar’s seal, election officer’s stamp and even the tehsildar’s personal stamp,” said Gajanan Ghadge, assistant police inspector, Panvel.The police believe he would meet people and pretend to be an intermediary and volunteer to get their documents attested for a fee. “He would charge anywhere between Rs500 and Rs 1,000 for documents. We also think that he may also have contributed in producing documents such as ration cards and certificates,” Ghadge added. Cops said that they may have unearthed a huge racket and will interrogate the accused to find if he had accomplices.