Pune Police and Military Intelligence Bust Fake Army Recruitment Racket; One Arrested for Rs 32 Lakh Scam

In a collaborative effort, Southern Command Military Intelligence and Pune Police have arrested a suspect for defrauding a defense services hopeful of Rs 32 lakh. The scam involved falsely guaranteeing a position as a Medical Assistant at Pune's Military Hospital, Kirkee.

The accused Sandeep Balwant Gurav (resident of  Kolhapur, Maharashtra) was apprehended by the authorities inside the Military Hospital, Kirkee premises on July 02 and has been on surveillance since April 2024. The accused was accompanied by a lady identified as Ashwini Laxman Patil during the arrest. Preliminary investigation revealed that Gaurav was an Indian Army personnel who joined the EME corps in the year 2003 but was later dismissed from service due to being a deserter for more than seven years.  

An FIR was filed at the Khadki Police station under sections 406, 420, 467, 468, and 471 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on July 03. Satappa Ramchandra Waghere (age 46, resident of Shiroli, Radhanagri, Kolhapur) had filed a complaint at the Khadki police station. As per the police, the Waghare was introduced to the accused Gaurav through a common friend Santosh Teli in the year 2020. Teli informed Waghere that Gurav is a retired Indian Army Officer and has high-level contacts in the Army and helps people get jobs in the defence services. Waghere requested Gurav to look for a job for his nephew Ajinkya Balwant Redekar as he was preparing for the army recruitment.

Gaurav told Waghere that he has many other jobs better than the Army in the defence forces and will assist him in the recruitment. Gaurav asked Waghere to meet him at the Military Hospital, Kirkee on November 26, 2020, accordingly Waghere along with his wife Madhuri and brother-in-law Vishwas Dinkar Choughule met Gurav at the Military Hospital, Kirkee for further discussions. Gaurav informed Waghere that there are multiple vacancies at the Military Hospital, Kirkee according to the Central Government's notification under the Allahabad Employees Recruitment Board and will help his wife and brother-in-law also for a job.

Waghere agreed to Gurav’s offer. The complainant later accompanied Gurav to the third floor of the Military Hospital where they were introduced to Army Officer Suraj Singh. Singh assured the complaint that all three members of his family will get a job at the Military Hospital in Khadki. The accused Gaurav later informed Waghere that he would pay Rs 12 lakh per person totalling Rs 36 lakh for the recruitment. When Waghere agreed to pay the desired amount Gurav took the complainant and his wife, nephew and brother in law on the third floor of the Military Hospital and asked him to wait outside while calling the wife, nephew and brother-in-law inside the Army Officer’s cabin to attend a written exam.

Waghere arranged for the money and initially transferred Rs 4 lakh on November 27, 2020, to the bank account of Gurav and later transferred the remaining amount of Rs 19 lakh at regular intervals. While the accused demanded the balance amount Waghere procured a loan of Rs 5 lakh from S.T Co.Operative Bank while his brother-in-law lent him Rs 5 lakh. Waghere handed over cash of Rs 10 lakh to Gurav’s wife and father-in-law in Kolhapur where his wife assured him that Gurav had helped many aspirants get a job and he would help him.

The complainant paid Rs 29,10,000 to the accused at regular intervals and while he inquired about the job the accused asked the complainant and the applicants to visit Pune every 15 days and undergo a COVID-19 test almost eight times. On July 08, 2021, the accused called Waghere and the applicants to Pune and handed them recruitment letters for the post of Regiment Medical Officer at the Military Hospital, Kirkee in Pune. On July 12, 2021, when Waghere along with his wife, brother-in-law and nephew visited the Military Hospital, Kirkee to join the security at the hospital gate informed them that the joining letter was fake. Waghere realised that Gurav defrauded him under the pretext of providing a job at Military Hospital, Kirkee.

When Waghere asked Gurav to pay back his money he returned Rs 94,000 to him and Rs 3,20,000 to his brother-in-law Vishwas. Later the accused filed a kidnapping case against Vishwas at the Radhanagri Police station in Kolhapur and asked him to pay Rs 1,60,000 for settlement.

As Waghere had submitted a written complaint at the Southern Command Military Intelligence the Pune Police along with the Military Intelligence officers arrested Sandeep Gurav for allegedly duping Waghere for Rs 29,10,000 by providing them with a fake joining letter with a fake stamp of OIC, Military Hospital, Kirkee. Sandeep Gurav is in Khadki Police Custody and further probe is underway.