On run for over a year, I-T Dept employee lands in police dragnet

The Delhi Police have arrested an Income Tax Department employee, a prime conspirator in a extortion-cum-dacoity case, an official said on Sunday.

Accused Deepak Kashyap had been on the run for over a year after being declared a proclaimed offender by the court.

The case dates back to August 1, 2023, when a businessman in Janakpuri reported that seven people, including a woman, forcibly entered his residence posing as Income Tax officials.

“They accused him of hiding income from a land deal and coerced his family into restraining communication, creating an atmosphere of fear. CCTV footage later confirmed the involvement of multiple persons using a SUV vehicle,” a senior police officer of the Crime Branch said.

Investigations revealed that Deepak Kashyap, using his official position in the Income Tax Department, orchestrated the entire operation.

He recruited accomplices who impersonated government officers to lend legitimacy to their illegal actions, he said.

“Initially arrested, Kashyap later jumped bail and evaded arrest, leading to his proclamation as an offender by the Dwarka Courts in November 2023,” said the officer.

Acting on specific inputs, the team conducted a raid in the Sabzi Mandi area, resulting in Kashyap’s arrest.

Kashyap, a resident of Mandawali Fazal Pur in Delhi, joined the Income Tax Department as a Stenographer in 2012.

He rose to the rank of Personal Secretary by leveraging his departmental experience, which he later misused to engineer the extortion conspiracy for personal gain, the police said.

Delhi