The Thane Crime Branch and an NGO busted a prostitution racket in the city on Thursday. Two men — the kingpin and an autorickshaw driver — were arrested; two women ‘escorts’ rescued
Gopal Prasad Gupta was the main supplier, said the police (right) Rakesh Kumar Saroj, the autorickshaw driver who transported the women
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The Thane Crime Branch and an NGO busted a prostitution racket in the city on Thursday. The police arrested two people and rescued two women who were forced into the racket. They suspect around 10 more women may be trapped in it. They also suspect that more people are involved in running it.
Those arrested were identified as Gopal Prasad Gupta (25) the main accused, and Rakesh Kumar Saroj (36), an autorickshaw driver who transported the women to customers. The two rescued women, including a Bangladeshi national, are in their late 20s.
Two days before the arrests, an ad was published in a well-known newspaper, mentioning Dream Girl Escort Service, 24X7 in Juhu, Bandra and adjoining areas. The NGO that doubted the service spoke to the police about it. “The ad had a mobile number for a person named Anjali. We got a hint that in the guise of the escort service, they were running a prostitution racket. We decided to use a dummy customer and trap them on Thursday night,” said Ravindra Dhaunkar, Senior Police Inspector, Anti-Human Trafficking Cell, Thane Crime Branch.
Auto driver transported women
Members of The Rescue Foundation, the NGO, pretended to be customers and approached the accused. “On Thursday night, we called on the number and asked them to come to Hiranandani estate in Thane. They said they charged Rs 4,500 per girl for a night. Accordingly, the two women came in an autorickshaw, driven by Saroj, to the spot,” said Nitin Mungekar, Investigation Officer, Rescue Foundation.
“Gopal was the main accused and the supplier who managed everything. He had asked us to give the cash to the autorickshaw driver. We caught hold of the driver and asked him to contact Gopal and arrested him too,” added Dhaunkar.
Over Rs 6 lakh in a month
During the investigation, the police found that Gopal was running the racket since August and provided girls even at customer’s houses.
“In a search of Gopal’s house we found a diary, in which he had a list of deals he had done since September 1. The diary reveals that in the past one month, he had conducted business of Rs 6.59 lakh and used to send at least five women everyday, depending on the demand,” added Dhaunkar.
A case has been registered at Kasarwadavli police station under section 370 (trafficking of persons) of the Indian Penal Code and different sections of the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act.
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