The Vadodara Detection of crime branch (DCB) said on Dec 4 that it has arrested a fugitive who had managed to escape police custody after being arrested on charges of impersonating as an official from the Gujarat chief minister’s office (CMO). 

Imposter and a criminal

Viraj Patel, the accused, was first apprehended in April on charges related to posing as a CMO official of Gandhinagar’s GIFT city and sexually assaulting a Mumbai-based woman.

The Gotri police arrested Patel after an individual called them  during a brawl in a  movie theatre. While arguing with the individual in the theatre, he mentioned that he is a CMO official. When police reached the scene and investigated, two different PAN cards were found from Patel who was the one throwing names.

Patel was staying at a hotel in Vadodara with a model who wanted to be a brand ambassador. The model also filed a complaint against Patel for an alleged rape.

He was arrested for two crimes and imprisoned in the Vadodara Central Jail.

Imposter-turned-fugitive

Patel’s daring escape took place during a court appearance in Vadodara on Nov 10, throwing the authorities into a tizzy.

Anupam Singh Gehlot, the police commissioner of Vadodara, coordinated ten teams to nab Patel.

One of the teams checked 500 CCTV footages to track his movement from Vadodara’s court to Ahmedabad.

It was learned that Patel first escaped to Ahmedabad and thereafter to Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Assam, Tripura, and Mizoram, from where he planned to escape abroad. The police also kept a watch on the people associated with the accused.

Police sub-inspector (PSI) RN Baraiya and his team were continuously chasing Patel.

His journey led him through Tripura, Assam, and eventually Mizoram, where he sought refuge and aimed to make his escape abroad. He was hiding at various addresses in Tripura, Assam, and Mizoram.

Patel was nabbed near the Mizoram-Assam border and has been escorted to Vadodara.

(With inputs from IANS)

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