Mumbai, Jan 9 (IANS): A day after a letter accusing three police officers of rape, sexual harassment and corruption, purportedly penned by 8 policewomen, surfaced on social media, the Mumbai Police have launched a probe into the matter, an official said on Monday.

The mystery letter, claimed to be written by the 8 women constables pointed fingers at a Deputy Commissioner of Police and two police inspectors of the Motor Vehicles Department.

Addressed to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar, the letter, dated last month, leaked on social media and became viral.

It alleged that the three officers had taken them to their official residences in their police vehicles and sexually assaulted them.

Taking the matter very seriously, the police started a discreet internal probe into the letter and even questioned the alleged eight victim policewomen for verifying the damaging allegations made in their names.

However, the 8 women cops flatly denied having penned any such letter and even said that their signatures affixed on it were fake, deepening the mystery.

The official said that now the police are focussing on tracing the antecedents of the letter, its sender, his/her real motives behind it and warned stringent action would be initiated against the mischief monger.