A 33-year-old woman from Odugathur village in Jawadhu Hills was arrested by Vellore North Police on Friday for posing as DSP.

The police said that the arrested woman S. Uma Maheshwari, a school dropout, was native of Odugathur village at the foothills of Jawadhu Hills. She was married and had two children. Initial inquiry revealed that Maheshwari was loitering inside the spacious fort complex in Vellore town when a few police personnel, who were on patrolling duty, asked about her purpose of visit.

As she claimed that she was a DSP in Chennai Crime Branch and then went on to give contradictory statements, she was taken to Vellore North police station. Investigators found that she brought a police uniform from Netaji market in the town to give ‘surprise’ to her friend on his birthday celebrations in the fort complex.

Police said that she told investigators that she was working as a house maid in Chennai for the past few months. She was also charged with theft in houses where she worked. Cases of burglary have also been registered against her. A probe is under way.