Mumbai, April 9: A police officer, who had been honoured with a special bravery award for rescuing more than two dozen people during the 2005 deluge, was arrested today for his alleged role in an airline e-ticketing scam.

Mumbai police’s economic offences wing held assistant police inspector Tushar Kadam after a one-and-a-half-month investigation. He had been suspended on February 16 this year on suspicion of involvement in the Rs 13.47-crore fraud.

“Kadam chose to turn a blind eye towards the scam though he was aware of it, and instead travelled to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh on Kingfisher Airlines tickets provided by the scamsters. He used the money to pay his mobile phone bills as well. We are also investigating details of his properties and a trust he had floated,” an investigating officer said.

Kadam was booked under Sections 420 (cheating), 212 (sheltering an offender) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy). He has been remanded in police custody till April 23.

Kadam’s arrest has shocked his colleagues. “He comes from a well-educated family and is a courageous officer. His exploits during the July 26 deluge speak for themselves,” an officer said.

But he added that “we always suspected he was in bad company”.