Four held for posing as tax officials, robbing man

Rajkot: Surendranagar police on Wednesday arrested four men who allegedly posed as income tax officers and extorted valuables from a citizen at gunpoint. The accused are Dakor residents Rajkumar Pandya and Rakesh Soni; and Nandu Vastekar and Manoj Variyani from Vadodara. Police seized Rs 2.23 lakh in cash, gold worth Rs 2 lakh and two SUVs valued at Rs 20 lakh from their possession. The arrests followed a complaint made at Zinzuwada police station. The complainant said the accused trespassed into his house, produced fake ID cards and claimed to be income tax officials. They demanded Rs 6.5 lakh for a "settlement." When he refused, they allegedly held him at gunpoint, forced him to hand over the cash and gold, and fled. The investigation revealed that Rakesh Soni, a relative of the complainant, was aware of the complainant's financial status and plotted the ‘raid' with the other accused. Police said three others involved in the offence are absconding.