Maharashtra: Trio Arrested for Circulating Fake Rs 500 Notes Through Deposit Machine in Kolhapur

Three individuals were arrested by the Old Rajwada police for attempting to circulate fake currency notes worth ₹500 through a bank deposit machine. The police seized 86 counterfeit ₹500 notes worth ₹43,000 from the suspects. The arrested individuals have been identified as Nikhil Kishan Sargar (30), Amol Ganapati Potdar (47) and Shivaprasad Dilip Kadam (25).

According to the Old Rajwada police, jeweller Amol Potdar was supposed to prepare a gold chain with low-quality gold for Nikhil Sargar. In return, Sargar handed Potdar counterfeit ₹500 notes. On September 24, 2024, Potdar gave ₹37,500 to his son Adhiraj to deposit in his wife's bank account. The money was deposited into the deposit machine at the Mahindra Kotak Bank at the Khar Corner branch.

Read Also | Gangster D.K. Rao Arrested by Mumbai Crime Branch for Extorting Rs 2.5 Crore from Hotelier

Bank staff noticed that 66 ₹500 notes in the machine’s reject box were fake. Following instructions from senior officials, Jotiba Vasantrao Tirvir (resident of Ambai Tank, Kolhapur) filed a complaint with the Old Rajwada police on September 28, 2024. After the case was registered, the three suspects fled. However, the police managed to arrest them and seized 20 more counterfeit notes. The earlier seizure of 66 fake notes had been made earlier.

Inspector Sanjeev Zade, along with the crime investigation team led by Sub-Inspector Santosh Galve, and officers Prashant Gholap, Satish Bambare, and Amar Patil, carried out the search operation and arrested the suspects.