Navi Mumbai: 4 'journalists' booked defrauding spa owner of Rs 26,000

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Navi Mumbai police have registered a case against four individuals, who purportedly identify as journalists, for allegedly extorting money from a spa owner in Panvel, as per a statement from an official on Wednesday.

No arrests have been made in connection with the case so far, confirmed Senior Inspector Nitin Thackeray of the Panvel police station.

The accused individuals have been identified as Kiran Surwade, Santosh Mhaske, Vikas Jha, and Zahid Dasana. Their affiliations with specific media organizations remain undisclosed.

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According to the complainant, the accused individuals threatened to report purported illegal activities at his spa to the police and subsequently coerced him into parting with Rs 26,000.

Following these developments, the complainant approached the police, leading to the registration of a case under Section 384 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code on Tuesday. Inspector Thackeray added that further investigation is currently underway.

Meanwhile, in another incident in the city, ten individuals sustained injuries when a bus returning from the Dussehra rally of Maharashtra's Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was involved in an accident on the Mumbai-Nashik Highway, according to local police, according to a report in ANI.

The report in ANI stated that the incident occurred when the bus, transporting attendees from the Dussehra event, reached a bridge on the Mumbai-Nashik highway near Shahapur. It was rear-ended by a truck, causing the bus to collide with the road divider and overturn in the middle of the roadway. Subsequently, another bus following behind also overturned due to the collision.

Witnesses and drivers present at the scene reported that the accident took place as the bus was returning to Mumbai after the Dussehra gathering.

Among the ten people injured in the accident, two sustained severe injuries, as per the police.

Earlier this month, a tragic accident in Maharashtra's Pune resulted in the death of four individuals, including two minors. The incident occurred near the Swaminarayan temple and Navle Bridge on the Pune-Bangaluru highway. Preliminary investigations suggested that the collision occurred due to brake failure when a truck collided with a container before striking another truck, leading to a subsequent fire, according to police officials.

With agency inputs
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