In a major breakthrough, Manipur Police have busted a gold counterfeiting racket involving three individuals engaged in a criminal conspiracy to manufacture and sell impure gold bars disguised as genuine ones, The arrests were made from the Hangoon area under Mayang Imphal Police Station in Kakching District,
The accused have been identified as Shivaji Gaikwad, 39, son of Bhaskar Gaikwad from Belavade, Sangli, Maharashtra, Jalindar Shamrao Jadhav, 42, son of Shamrao Jadhav from Mohi, Khanapur Taluka, Sangli, Maharashtra, and Ramdas Tanaji Khandare, 37, son of Tanaji Khandare from Isawar Dutta Lane, Howrah, West Bengal,
Police said the trio was engaged in a fraudulent operation using specialized equipment to manufacture counterfeit gold bars of various weights, complete with fake trademarks, to deceive the public,
The following items were seized from their possession, one hydraulic machine, one NOMAN melting machine, ninety-four graphite crucibles of different sizes, three tongs, five carbon rods, two bottles of nitric acid, one SPICA hydraulic power pack, two carbon rod holders, and one MASTECH AC/DC clamp meter,
The arrests were made on 24 May 2025, and investigations are ongoing to uncover the full extent of the counterfeit operation.
