Pune: 2 held for demanding Rs 7 crore in hoax bomb call to cops

Dog squad during the search operation

A caller who kept Pune cops on their toes for several hours was finally nabbed by the local crime branch of Pune Railway Police, -which had been simultaneously investigating the matter after the Pune police control room received a hoax call on May 3.

Along with the accused, the cops also arrested his friend, who had provided Bhimaji Kale the sim card to make the hoax call. The caller had demanded Rs 7 crore from the cops to give details on a bomb planted at Pune railway station. The police then launched a detailed search operation along with bomb disposal and dog squads. After receiving the call, the police swung into action and searched the railway premises from platform number 1 to 7.

The police officials also checked the waiting rooms, parcel offices, parking lots, and railway tracks. However, nothing suspicious was found. A case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered in the matter, the police said. While investigating the matter, the police zeroed in on a mobile number from which the call was made.

The caller, identified as Bhimaji Kale (33), a resident of Vagholi in Pune, was nabbed on May 3. His arrest led to his friend, Suraj Thakur (30), a native of Hoshiyarpur in Punjab who had been residing in Jalna, Maharashtra.

Thakur had provided Kale with the sim card that was used to make the hoax call, the police added. "The caller in the matter had also mentioned a name of a person and had stated that he had planted the bomb. The investigators are now in the process of questioning the duo to establish the motive behind taking that person's name," the police said.