The Beed Police Detective Branch has arrested Pravin Gaikwad and Akash Jadhav from Pune in connection with a counterfeit currency scam. The two suspects were allegedly planning to circulate fake currency notes in Pune using college admission fees. The arrest was made on Friday in Ambegaon, Pune, after an extensive investigation into the fraudulent scheme.
Police investigations revealed that Manish Kshirsagar, the mastermind behind the counterfeit currency racket, supplied the fake currency notes to Gaikwad, who works as an admission agent. Gaikwad allegedly planned to mix the counterfeit notes with the actual college admission fees he collected from students. According to the police, for each batch of fake notes worth Rs4 lakh, Gaikwad would receive Rs2 lakh as his commission.
Shitalkumar Ballal, the police inspector heading the investigation, explained, “Gaikwad, working as an admission agent for private colleges in Pune, devised a plan to circulate counterfeit currency notes. He received fake notes from Kshirsagar, but we arrested him before he could distribute them in the market.”
During the arrest, police seized Rs8,500 in counterfeit currency, consisting of Rs500, Rs200, and Rs100 denominations. Authorities believe that the scam involved more players, and the search for additional suspects is ongoing.
Police further revealed that Manish Kshirsagar has a criminal record and has previously circulated fake notes in various businesses, including restaurants, petrol pumps, and grocery shops in Beed. According to Ballal, Kshirsagar’s modus operandi involved giving counterfeit Rs500 notes to children and asking them to purchase goods, thereby exchanging the fake notes for real money at local shops.
Before the police could raid his residence, Kshirsagar managed to escape. Investigators suspect that Kshirsagar came into contact with a gang from West Bengal and started printing counterfeit currency using methods learned from YouTube videos.
The Beed Police are continuing their investigation into the network behind the counterfeit currency scam, and more arrests are expected as the operation unfolds.