Panvel: A 71-year-old man and his son helped foil an attempted extortion by two men posing as policemen at the Panvel bus depot on June 9. One of the suspects has been arrested, while the other remains at large.

Shantaram More, a resident of Khanda Colony, had gone to Panvel at around 6 pm, when he was stopped by a man claiming to be a police officer. The man accused More of theft. Soon, another man pretending to be a senior officer arrived on the scene and took More’s ID cards.

The duo then demanded Rs 50,000 to avoid registering a false case against More and insisted he sign a bond paper. When More expressed his inability to pay the demanded sum, the two accused compelled him to settle for Rs 25,000.

Thinking on his feet, More convinced the duo to accompany him to his home in Khanda Colony under the pretext of arranging the money. Once there, he alerted his son, Sanket, who managed to nab one of the impostors.
The other suspect managed to flee.  The man was later identified as Pradeep Bapurao Patil (40) and handed over to Panvel City Police. A case has been registered and police have launched a manhunt for the other accused.