The accused, Aryan Verma, was under the army radar for nearly two months after they received inputs about him being frequently seen wearing the ceremonial dress of a Brigadier and projecting himself as a high-ranking officer. (Sourced)
The accused has been identified as Aryan Verma who was under the army radar for nearly two months after they received inputs about him being frequently seen wearing the ceremonial dress of a Brigadier and projecting himself as a high-ranking officer.
Two bouncers passed off as NSG commandos
Verma had a carefully detailed plan to complete the impersonation as he hired two bouncers and went around introducing them as National Security Guard (NSG) commandos, HT reported earlier. He reportedly claimed to have been provided with special security cover and projected the image of a high-profile military officer.
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He also had a forged identity card purportedly bearing the seal of the dean of the Armed Forces Medical College. An Army regimental cane and a fake pistol were also seized from his possession.
How he was caught
As the Army had been tracking him for a couple of months, a trap was laid to catch him red-handed. Army officials contacted him while posing as civilians and invited him to deliver a motivational speech to young candidates preparing for recruitment examinations. The event was purportedly scheduled at the Shaheed Museum located within the Cantonment area.
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As expected, Verma arrived at the venue on Friday morning dressed in military uniform in tune with his impersonated identity and was travelling in an SUV (Harrier) bearing military stars and flags associated with senior officers, officials said.
Army personnel detained him immediately upon his arrival. During the operation, officials also recovered a fake government identity card from his driver.
An Army Intelligence team from Bareilly has now taken over the investigation and is questioning the accused to ascertain the motive for the alleged impersonation, while the extent of the impersonation, the source of the forged documents and uniform are also under probe.
Superintendent of police Saurabh Dixit said Army authorities were currently interrogating Verma.
Upon recovering documents from Verma’s possession, the authorities found out that he was 21-years-old and had been staying in Delhi. He had been preparing for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), entrance exams for medical studies, and had allegedly failed the test multiple times.
Verma, his associates, and the recovered items have been handed over to the Sadar police station in Shahjahanpur for further investigation and legal action.
The army is coordinating with local police in the matter.
