Mumbai: Latur teen held for threatening to disrupt IND vs NZ semifinal match

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The Mumbai Police Crime Branch on Wednesday detained a 17-year-old from Maharashtra's Latur for allegedly making threats to the cops via social media warning of disturbances during the ICC World Cup India vs New Zealand semifinal match, stated agency reports. The match is currently playing out in Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.

According to the report, the suspect, who is a self-proclaimed cricket enthusiast, had issued threats on X (previously known as Twitter) and stated that there will be an untoward incident at Wankhede stadium during the match today. The report further quoted Mumbai Police confirming that the threat was unfounded. The motive behind the teen issuing the threat remains undisclosed.

The threatening post, in which Mumbai Police's official handle was tagged, stated that there would be a disruption during the much anticipated India vs New Zealand match and the anonymous post included an image featuring a gun, hand grenades, and bullets.

A Mumbai Police official reported, "An unidentified individual posted a threat to Mumbai Police on X, warning of a malevolent act during India vs New Zealand match at Wankhede Stadium today. Stringent security measures have been implemented in and around the stadium as a precaution. The individual tagged Mumbai Police in the post and included an image displaying a gun, hand grenades, and bullets."

To ensure safety during the match, the city police deployed a robust security presence of over 600 personnel, including over 150 officers along with drone cameras, CCTV surveillance, the Quick Response Team, the State Reserve Police Force and riot control police.

Semi-final match

The semi-final match began a little while ago with India opting to bat first, India captain Rohit Sharma along with Shubhman Gill were the opening batsmen. Sharma led from the front with a blistering 47 before getting out; he left India 71-1 in the ninth over. Following his departure, 'Run machine' Virat Kohli stepped on the pitch and made 20 runs off 26 balls.