The Badlapur sexual assault case accused, Akshay Shinde, was injured in police 'retaliatory' firing in Maharashtra's Thane district, the police said on Monday. According to sources, Shinde allegedly snatched weapon from the police team and fired one of the officer who had got injuries and in retaliation he was shot by police and seriously injured in the incident. He was later shifted to a hospital. The incident was confirmed by Thane Police Commissioner. The police said that Badlapur police officers had visited to Taloja Jail to take custody of him in a fresh case filed by his ex-wife. At around 6:30 pm, as the police team approached the Mumbra bypass, he allegedly grabbed a weapon from one of the constables and shot him. In response, another police officer opened fire on the man, critically injuring him. Sources from Taloja Jail said that Shinde was taken by Badlapur crime branch from Taloja at around 5:30 pm. Further details are awaited.
23 September,2024 07:01 PM IST | Mumbai | Faizan KhanIn a shocking incident, a 29-year-old woman allegedly killed her 2-year-old daughter before hanging herself in Dombivli area of Thane district in Maharashtra, the officials said on Monday. According to the police, the incident took place at posh neighbourhood in Dombivli, where the woman identified as Pooja Rahul Sapkal (29) allegedly took the life of her 2-year-old daughter before killing herself by hanging. The Manpada Police in Dombivali are investigating the matter further to ascertain the exact reason behind the extreme step. According to the preliminary police investigation, Pooja allegedly smothered her daughter to death by using a pillow while she was in the living room of their flat. She then proceeded to hang herself, taking her own life. The incident came to light when local authorities were alerted, and a team from the Manpada police station rushed to the scene. Upon arrival, they found the lifeless bodies of both the mother and child. Officers have conducted a preliminary investigation and registered the case. An official said that the exact reason behind the mother’s extreme step is yet not known, but police officials are conducting further inquiries to understand the circumstances that led to the incident.
23 September,2024 06:06 PM IST | Mumbai | Apoorva AgasheThe Kalyan Government Railway Police (GRP) has launched investigations after around Rs 20 lakh cash was found in an abandoned bag at a railway station in Maharashtra, the officials said. The police are trying to find out the original owner of the cash, an official said. The bag, which was found at around 11 pm on Sunday, contained several bundles of Rs 500 notes, a bag, and a medicine box, he said. The passengers who found the bag at Asangaon railway station handed it over to the police. The Kalyan GRP seized the bag after conducting a primary panchanama and began investigations in the matter, the officials said. "We are checking the CCTV footage from different railway stations to identify who was carrying the bag and got inside the train. This will further help us reach the owner of the bag and cash in it. Once we trace the person, we can clarify whether the cash is legal or not. We would further question if the person forgot it on the train or if the cash was being illegally transported and later abandoned," said a police officer.
23 September,2024 05:52 PM IST | Mumbai | Faisal TandelThe chairman and secretary of a school in Maharashtra's Badlapur, where a male attendant allegedly sexually assaulted two girls, have moved the Bombay High Court seeking pre-arrest bail, reported the PTI. A case has been registered against the duo under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for not reporting the incident to the police immediately and for negligence. They approached the high court after a special court denied them anticipatory bail. Their pleas came up for hearing on Monday before a single bench of Justice R N Laddha, and the court posted the matter for October 1, according to the PTI. Two girls, aged four and five, were sexually assaulted inside the washroom of the school by a male attendant last month. The accused has been arrested. The Badlapur police were initially probing the case, but the Maharashtra government set up a special investigation team (SIT) following a public outcry over serious lapses in the police investigation. While the male attendant was arrested, the school's chairman and secretary have not been apprehended yet. Last month, the high court took suo motu (on its own) cognisance of the case and is supervising the investigation. Meanwhile, last week, the SIT had filed two chargesheets in separate cases of sexual assault that occurred at a school in Badlapur. The chargesheets were submitted within 30 to 35 days after the incidents were reported. The SIT presented the 500-page chargesheets for both cases at the special POSCO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) court in Kalyan. The chargesheet was filed against the suspect accused of sexually assaulting the girl, including the headmaster and two staff members from the school. The SIT has taken statements from approximately 20 key witnesses, including school staff, doctors, tehsil office officials, and forensic experts, strengthening the case against the accused. A senior officer confirmed that the chargesheet had been filed and noted that statements from the victims and their parents had also been taken. The incidents occurred on August 12 and 13 in the school washroom. The matter came to light after one of the girls reported it to her parents, leading to a case being registered at the Badlapur East police station on August 16. The accused was arrested the following day, on August 17. (with PTI inputs)
23 September,2024 04:26 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentA domestic help employed at several homes in Bimbisar Nagar of Mumbai's Jogeshwari was allegedly scammed of Rs 7,000 by a man who promised her better job opportunities. The complainant Vanita Kolte was approached by the accused when she was crossing the Western Express Highway and approaching the MHADA colony. The accused claimed to be a driver for a family in Lodha and heaped praises on her work. He said he could introduce her to a woman who is selling her home decor for reduced prices and that they could make money by selling it. He also promised that he could help her get better jobs at Lodha apartments. Kolte told mid-day that she conveyed to the man that she did not have money when he asked her to make an initial investment; she said the accused convinced her that she would benefit from the opportunity. "He escorted me to a nearby shop, where a shopkeeper agreed to give cash in exchange for an online transfer. I contacted my sister, who transferred Rs 7,000 using a QR code provided by the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper handed the cash, which I immediately gave to the man," Kolte said. Reportedly, the man left promising to return shortly but never did. She then realised she was duped and approached Vanrai police station. She, however, alleged that the police were dismissive and that an officer allegedly remarked that she had "merely lost Rs 7,000" and that they were busy managing the Eid procession. Despite assurances that they would investigate and check for CCTV footage, Kolte has yet to receive any updates from the police, she said. “The Vanrai Police have taken my complaint but have not registered an FIR yet. They were supposed to take me to the location for a panchnama, but it’s been five days, and I haven’t received any call. Rs 7,000 seems like a small amount but it is equivalent to my one month's salary,” Kolte lamented.
23 September,2024 02:36 PM IST | Mumbai | Faizan KhanAn official on Monday said that the police have registered a case against a 21-year-old man on charges of molesting his cousin brother's 18-month-old daughter in Thane district of Maharashtra, reported news agency PTI. The child's father has also been booked for threatening his wife after she complained to him about the incident which took place in Bhiwandi area on May 8, an official from Narpoli police station said while sharing an update on Thane crime, reported PTI. The First Information Report (FIR) did not mention any reason for the delay in filing of the complaint on Sunday. The man allegedly stripped the child and molested her. When the child's mother complained to her husband, he and the accused threatened her with dire consequences, the official said while sharing an update on Thane crime, reported PTI. Based on a complaint by the woman, the case was registered on Sunday against the two men under various Indian Penal Code sections, including 354 (assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention), and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he said. Teacher held for molesting woman; two accomplices on run A teacher was arrested for allegedly molesting a woman at a lodge in Latur city, police said on Sunday, reported PTI. Two other men involved in allegedly assaulting and molesting the woman are on the run. The complainant became acquainted with the accused at Tuljapur bus stand in Dharashiv district who assured to help her find a job, an official said, reported PTI. "He called up the woman to Latur on September 15. She was made to sit in a car where two men allegedly molested and assaulted the woman inside the vehicle. The victim was taken to a lodge in Kolpa area where she was again assaulted," the official said, reported PTI. A case has been registered and the accused teacher was arrested, said police inspector Santosh Patil. Septuagenarian held for molesting 9-year-old girl in Kolhapur A senior citizen has been arrested for allegedly molesting his daughter's nine-year-old student in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district, police said. Based on a complaint by the girl's family, the police on Sunday registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and arrested the 73-year-old accused, an official said, reported PTI. The incident occurred in the Radhanagari area in the first week of September, he said. The accused's daughter conducted tuition classes, and the girl was one of her students. The girl complained to her aunt that the accused had molested her, the official said, reported PTI. The accused has been remanded in police custody, and further probe is underway, he said. (With inputs from PTI)
23 September,2024 12:47 PM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondentThe police on Monday said that unidentified miscreants allegedly broke into a Thane school and stole goods valued at Rs 61,000 from there, reported news agency PTI. The Walmiki School at Ambivili was closed between September 5 and 14 on account of the Ganpati festival, reported PTI. During this period, some persons allegedly broke into the premises and stole fans, speaker boxes, ladders and computers valued at Rs 61,000, an official from Khadakpada police station said. When the Thane school reopened after the holidays, the management found these items missing, the police said quoting a complaint filed by the school head, reported PTI. Based on a complaint filed on Saturday, an FIR was registered against unidentified persons under sections 305(a) (theft in a dwelling house, or means of transportation or place of worship, etc) and 331(2)(3) (house-trespass or housebreaking) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the police said, reported PTI. A probe was on into the case, they added. Man stabs conductor on civic-run bus in Mumbai during robbery bid; arrested A 22-year-old man attacked an on-duty conductor of civic transport body-run bus with a knife and tried to snatch his bag containing fare collection in Mumbai, police said on Friday, reported PTI. The incident, in which conductor Ashok Dagale (44) suffered grievous injuries, took place at Dharavi in Central Mumbai on Thursday night and the accused, Shaban Khan, was apprehended within four hours of the attack, an official said, reported PTI. Khan entered the BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) bus between 9.05 pm and 9.20 pm at Dharavi when it was going towards Vikhroli from Pydhonie. He tried to snatch the conductor's money bag which had fare collection, he said, reported PTI. When Dagale resisted the robbery attempt, the accused took out a knife and attacked him multiple times, leaving him seriously injured, he said. While getting off the bus, Khan snatched the conductor's mobile phone and fled, according to the official, reported PTI. Dagle was admitted to a hospital for treatment. After scanning CCTV footage, police tracked down Khan, who stayed in Dharavi's Kawale Chawl, and apprehended him, and subsequently registered a case against him. (With inputs from PTI)
23 September,2024 11:03 AM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondentAn official on Monday said that the police have arrested two persons after seizing banned gutka and tobacco products valued at Rs 9.04 lakh in Maharashtra's Thane district, reported news agency PTI. Acting on a tip-off, a team from the Kalyan Crime Branch unit conducted a raid at a shop in the Shil-Phata area on Friday night. The team seized the contraband stock, which included various brands of gutka and tobacco products intended for sale and distribution, a police spokesperson said while sharing an update on the Thane crime, reported PTI. Two persons, both aged 29 and residents of Mumbra and Shil-Phata area, were arrested after the raid, reported PTI. They were booked under various Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections, including 123 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc, with intent to commit an offence), 275 (sale of noxious food or drink) and 223 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), and relevant FDA regulations, the police said while sharing an update on the Thane crime. Authorities were investigating where the accused procured the banned goods. Brazilian woman held after recovery of 124 cocaine capsules concealed in her body The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested a Brazilian woman after recovering 124 cocaine-filled capsules that she swallowed before landing at the Mumbai International Airport, an official said, reported PTI. The value of the seized contraband, which was being brought for smuggling in India, is estimated to be Rs 9.73 crore, he said, adding that a probe was on to trace other members of the international drug syndicate, reported PTI. The woman was intercepted on a specific input after she landed from Sao Paulo on Wednesday, a DRI Mumbai zonal unit official said on Sunday. The passenger admitted to having ingested capsules containing drugs and carrying them in her body for smuggling into India. She was produced before a magistrate and admitted to the state-run JJ Hospital, reported PTI. "She purged 124 capsules containing 973 grams of cocaine, valued at Rs 9.73 crore in the illicit market. The substance, purported to be cocaine as per the field test report, was seized on Saturday under provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act," the official said, reported PTI. The passenger has been arrested and further investigation is underway to trace other members of the international drug syndicate, the official added. (With inputs from PTI)
23 September,2024 09:46 AM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondentThe South Cyber Cell arrested a 36-year-old man who allegedly cheated an Indian Navy officer of Rs 22.97 lakh. The police will be initiating a process to freeze the bank account to which the complainant’s money was transferred. The suspect has been identified as Maman Munshi. The matter came to light when the Indian Navy officer, Dinesh Kumar Yadav, 36, approached the police station to register an FIR after realising that he had been duped. The police booked unknown people under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and IT Act. According to the FIR, the victim had received WhatsApp messages from people who introduced themselves as Avinash Sharma, Karan Modi and Akshata. “From May to August 2024, the trio messaged him and said they work with UBS Securities, assuring him huge profits if he invested in stock trading,” said a police officer. He then received a link on WhatsApp telling him to invest in stocks through an app. “He invested Rs 22.97 lakh via the app. Initially he saw profit on his investments but later realised that he had been duped,” the police said. The police traced the bank account to which the money had been transferred. “It belonged to a person identified as Shoaib Anthony. It was later revealed that Munshi was using the bank account, which led to his arrest,” the police officer said.
23 September,2024 07:10 AM IST | Mumbai | Apoorva AgasheThe Bhandup police have registered a case under newly introduced sections addressing crimes against women, based on the complaint of a female junior artiste. They have invoked Section 69 (sexual intercourse by employing deceitful means, etc) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The woman has alleged that she was raped on the pretext of marriage and forced to undergo an abortion by the man. Section 69 was added to the BNS to ensure justice for women in cases like these, which were previously categorised as rape under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) but often treated as technical cases. Section 69 pertains to cases where consensual intercourse cannot be considered rape. The old law was often misused, with several rape cases being registered even though intercourse was consensual. Investigators faced challenges in determining whether such cases constituted rape, which allowed the accused to evade legal consequences by arguing that intercourse was consensual, even if false promises had been made. Now, Section 69 clarifies that while such acts may not be classified as rape, they still carry serious legal consequences, including up to ten years of imprisonment and potential fines. According to the FIR registered with the Bhandup police, the 31-year-old complainant is a junior artiste working in the television industry. In her statement, she told the police that she met the accused, Vijay Patil, 30, at a gym. They became friends as he lived near her residence. The woman claimed that their friendship evolved into a romantic relationship and they began communicating frequently through text messages and phone calls. She stated that in May, Patil entered her house around 1 am and initiated physical intimacy despite her objections. The woman added that Patil promised to marry her afterwards, and they continued to meet multiple times, during which they had a physical relationship. According to the FIR, she became pregnant sometime between July and August, after which Patil allegedly asked her to terminate the pregnancy and provided her with abortion pills. The woman stated that the abortion took place at her residence in August. “After this, Patil started avoiding me, and when I questioned him about the marriage, he would evade the topic and change the subject,” the woman’s statement reads. According to the woman, when Patil continued avoiding her and refused to answer questions about their marriage, she went to his house and met his parents. To her shock, she discovered that his marriage had already been arranged with someone else. “When I confronted him about this, he blocked my number and stopped communicating with me, which led me to file a complaint against him,” her statement reads. Based on the woman's complaint, the police have registered a case against Patil under BNS Sections 69 and 89 (causing miscarriage without the woman's consent). “A case has been registered based on the new amendments to the law. The accused is currently absconding and a search has been launched to nab him,” said Dattatray Khandagle, senior inspector, Bhandup police station.
23 September,2024 07:08 AM IST | Mumbai | Faizan KhanA month after Mahim police quarters was rocked by a series of housebreaking incidents, it has come to light that an unidentified thief has stolen 30 to 40 car batteries from an area just 100 metres away from the spot. Residents told mid-day that they approached the police on several occasions, but no first information report was registered and the matter was not investigated. The modus operandi of the unidentified battery thief involves using a tool to open car doors and then the bonnet to steal batteries. Residents claimed they had caught the accused red-handed twice, but before they could hand him over to the cops, the accused managed to escape. The residents eventually approached Mahim police with a written application, demanding the arrest of the thief. Most of the vehicles with stolen batteries were parked on roads in the Mahim West area, just stone’s throw from the Mahim police station. According to residents, the incidents occurred over the past two months. Many residents are now locking their car batteries with chains after parking their vehicles. Victim 1J P Dias, 50-year-old IT professional“I reside at Silver Green Society near Baba Falooda shop in Mahim West. I park my car outside my society daily. On Wednesday I parked my car after returning from office. The next morning, when I was heading to work, my car wouldn’t start. I called a mechanic and he found that the battery was missing. The thief had even locked the doors after stealing the battery.” Victim 2Mushtaq Ansari, Activist and resident of Mahim WestHe caught the accused on Friday morning while he was stealing a car battery, but the latter managed to escape before he could be handed over to the police. Ansari, who is in the second-hand car business, has had 12 car batteries stolen so far. He said, “I approached the Mahim police station multiple times, but they didn’t register a case saying it is just a battery.” Victim 3Dattatray B Babar,64-year-old retired MTNL employee residing at MMC Cross RoadTwo days ago, an unidentified person stole the battery from his Innova. Babar said, “I park my car outside my society daily. After the Ganpati visarjan, when I went to start my car in the morning, it wouldn’t respond. I called a mechanic, and we found that the car battery was missing. All the car doors were open. I had to purchase a new battery, which cost me Rs 6,000.” Victim 4Sanjay Janardhan Marathe, 49-year-old resident of Sahu Nagar and owner of garage in Mahim West“A few days ago, I parked a taxi on the road because a few cars were in our garage for servicing. In the evening, when I tried to start the taxi, I found the battery missing. I had to buy a battery worth R4,000,” he said. Victim 5Rahat Ali Sayyed, a 40-year-old taxi driver residing at Kamgar Chawl in MahimHe also lost his car battery a few days ago. Sayyed told mid-day, “I parked my car outside my society, and in the morning, when I tried to start it, I couldn’t. When I opened the bonnet, I found the battery missing. I approached the cops, but they didn’t register my case.” Victim 6Rahmat Shaikh,a 40-year-old resident of MahimHe told mid-day, “I buy and sell second-hand cars, and three days ago, my car battery was stolen. I had parked my car outside Canossa High School. The thief had opened the car door. Now, I have to buy a new battery, which will cost me at least Rs 4,000.” Victim 7Noorul Hasan, runs a garage in MahimHe told mid-day, “A few days ago, I parked a car in the morning after receiving it from a customer for servicing. Just two to three hours later, when I tried to start the vehicle, nothing happened. When I checked, I found out that the battery was missing.”
23 September,2024 07:03 AM IST | Mumbai | Shirish VaktaniaADVERTISEMENT
