Taxi Driver Arrested After Threatening Decoy Cops on Journey to Borivali
A 49-year-old taxi driver was arrested on Thursday by the Sahar police after he allegedly threatened decoy police officers with dire consequences when they questioned an inflated fare during a journey to Borivali. The incident, which occurred on June 25, was part of a special law enforcement operation targeting extortionist taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers operating from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.
The accused driver, identified as Warisali Sayuddin Shaikh, was apprehended after a coordinated trap. Two police constables, Devidas Sonawane, 56, and Akshay Borate, posed as decoy customers looking for transport to Borivali. They were accompanied by two independent witnesses, 19-year-olds Avnish Tiwari and Siddhesh Khedekar.
According to the complaint filed by Sonawane, the decoy team was waiting near the Hyatt hotel signal on the opposite side of the airport's exit lane. Shaikh approached the group and offered to drive them to Borivali for an agreed fare of ₹550. However, once the journey was underway, Shaikh demanded an inflated fare of ₹800.
When the undercover officers questioned the sudden escalation in price, Shaikh allegedly threatened them with dire consequences and warned them to remain seated if they did not want any trouble.
A police team trailing the taxi intercepted the vehicle after receiving a signal from Sonawane. Officers arrested Shaikh on the spot and initiated the process to suspend his driving licence.
The Sahar police launched this special crackdown after a previous incident on January 12, in which a female tourist from the United States was fleeced of $200, or approximately ₹18,000, for a brief 400-metre ride from the airport to her hotel. The driver in that case was arrested and his vehicle was seized.
According to the police, errant drivers like Shaikh are now being booked for extortion in addition to cheating. This dual charge aims to curb the menace of drivers threatening, fleecing, and extorting money from tourists and passengers leaving the airport.
