A man from Bihar who impersonated an IAS officer for six months has been arrested in Gorakhpur along with two accomplices, police announced on December 12, 2025. Lalit Kishor, a resident of Sitamarhi, posed as "Gaurav Kumar" and allegedly orchestrated an elaborate extortion racket involving fake government inspections, promises of tenders and jobs, and large-scale fraud across multiple states.

Kishor, his brother-in-law Abhishek Kumar, and aide Parmanand Gupta were taken into custody following an anonymous tip-off that exposed his operations from a rented house in Chiluatal and an office in Jhungiya Bazar. To maintain the facade, Kishor used beacon-equipped vehicles with forged government nameplates, hired 10 armed gunmen at ₹30,000 each per month, and employed a stenographer for ₹60,000 monthly.

Authorities recovered several forged identity cards, laptops, cash, jewellery, and AI-manipulated photographs where Kishor had superimposed his face over images of genuine officials. Police described the use of artificial intelligence tools to create convincing visuals as a sophisticated element of the deception.

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The gang targeted private institutions and individuals, conducting bogus inspections—particularly at schools—and demanding hefty payments. In one case, aides allegedly extorted up to ₹55 lakh from a school in Bhatat. Victims from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh reported losses, including one Patna complainant who claimed to have paid over ₹1.70 crore plus two vehicles for promised tenders.

Additional Superintendent of Police (City) Abhinav Tyagi confirmed the arrests and judicial remand of the trio, urging other victims to come forward and file complaints. The case highlights growing concerns over impersonation scams exploiting official authority for financial gain.

Investigations continue into the full extent of the racket, with police examining digital evidence and tracing additional accomplices or beneficiaries. The incident underscores vulnerabilities in verifying official credentials amid advancing technology enabling realistic forgeries.

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