Boudh, June 17: In a major embarrassment for the police department, a constable posted at Adarsh Police Station in Boudh district has been arrested on charges of cheating a fellow policeman. Hridananda Behera, the accused constable, allegedly duped Home Guard Pradeep Tripathy by falsely promising to facilitate a loan.
Based on a complaint filed by Tripathy, Boudh police registered a case and launched an investigation. Behera was subsequently arrested and produced before the court on Tuesday.
During a raid at Behera’s residence, police recovered a staggering ₹5 lakh in cash, 60 bank passbooks, 43 ATM cards, 29 checkbooks, 209 blank cheques, 11 property sale deeds, 145 grams of gold, and an undisclosed amount of silver. He has been placed under suspension, and departmental proceedings are underway, Superintendent of Police Rahul Goel informed during a press briefing.
Sources revealed that Behera had earlier served as a treasury officer at the SP’s office. It was during that tenure he allegedly took advantage of his position to deceive Home Guard Tripathy under the pretext of arranging a loan.
The case has triggered concerns about a potential larger network of fraud within the department. The police have not ruled out the involvement of others and have indicated further investigation into whether more personnel or individuals were complicit.
The sizable haul of financial documents and valuables has also prompted calls for a vigilance probe. Questions are being raised about how such alleged misconduct could have gone unnoticed within the police hierarchy for such a long time.
SP Goel has assured that all angles of the case will be thoroughly investigated.
