OFFENCE AGAINST REALTY FIRM, BROKER - Santacruz resident `duped' of Rs 7cr with promise of 22 flats

Mateen Hafeez





 

Mumbai: A Santacruz resident, who had paid up Rs 7 crore in connection with the purchase of 22 flats in Kalamboli in Navi Mumbai, has lodged a cheating complaint with the economic offences wing of the Mumbai police. An offence has been registered against three partners of Monarch Universal Group--Gopal Thakur, Hasmukh Thakur and Roshan Seth--besides real estate agent Kiran Perwani who brokered the deal.
Pariani said that he had been given documents after he made the payment but he later learnt that the flats were mortgaged to a non-banking financial firm from whom the accused firm had allegedly taken a loan of Rs 40 crore.
Police sources said that Pariani had given the agent four cheques for Rs 7 crore for 22 flats. In exchange, he was issued agreement letters, agreement for sale, an irrevocable power of attorney, possession letter and other documents in his favour.

Pariani has told the police that his attempts to get the documents registered were stopped by the accused. Subsequently , Pariani decided to get the same registered independently . At the sub-registrar's office in Panvel, he learnt that the developers had mortaged some flats of the said projects (including the ones meant for him) to a non-banking company , Capri Global Private Limited, and the mortgage deed had been kept at the sub-registrar's office. Accordingly , he was told to bring a no-objection certificate from this company.

When Pariani approached the company , he was told that the developers had mortgaged many flats with them for which the company had financed Rs 40 crore.

Police sources said that the accused allegedly misrepresented facts to Pariani and other investors about mortgage and finance from Capri Global.

Monarch Universal Group could not reached for comment during the weekend holiday .





The Times of India, April 13, 2015

Speeding car thief hits two women, 1 dies

Mateen Hafeez

Trapped By Police, Man Was Trying To Flee In Stolen SUV





 

Mumbai: A 35-year-old interstate car thief, trying to escape a police trap, rammed his stolen SUV into two women returning from office in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday. While the thief was caught within minutes, one of the women, who was dragged under the SUV's tyre, succumbed to her injuries a day later.

The deceased, Sushma Shrivastava (23), and her colleague Urvi Gala (22), who work in a firm that manufactures and supplies automobile wipers, arms and blades, were returning from their office on Wednesday when they were caught in the bizarre incident at Mhape, Navi Mumbai.

Sources said Mumbai police's anti-motor vehicle theft team had received information that a vehicle thief, Yaseen Shaikh, was coming to Mumbai to sell a Tavera stolen from Valsad. A policeman, posing as a potential buyer, approached Shaikh through an agent. A squad led by inspector Jagdish Sail, assistant inspector Shivaji Shivthare, specialized cops Anwar Memon, Babu Raut and Gyaneshwar Sonawane reached the spot early while Shaikh arrived at 5.15pm. While Shaikh was in the driver's seat, the `buyer' sat in the rear seat and kept him busy in bargaining, finalizing the deal for Rs 80,000 for the 2014 model car. The waiting police team approached the Tavera and was about to nab Shaikh when he realized he was trapped and instantly sped away in the SUV.

A few feet away , the two women were chatting at a corner of the road when a panicked Shaikh knocked them down. While the SUV flung Gala into the air, Shrivastava fell on the road and the vehicle dragged her for a few feet. By the time the policeman inside the car could understand what was happening, Shaikh had left team of cops behind. The policeman tried to stop the vehicle by holding on to Shaikh, however, as the vehicle reached a dead-end near a service road, Shaikh jumped out and fled into the forest. The policeman pursued him and was joined by the other cops, who finally caught Shaikh after a 15-minute chase. By then, the MIDC Rabale police, which was informed over the wireless, arrived and took Shaikh into custody .

Shrivastava was admitted to Mumbai's JJ Hospital in a critical condition where she succumbed to her injuries on Thursday . “We have booked Shaikh for culpable homicide amounting not to murder. He has been sent to police custody for two days,“ said R B Deshmukh, senior inspector of MIDC police station. The car has been seized. “Shaikh hails from Pratapgarh, UP and is part of an-inter state car theft racket. We are questioning him,“ said assistant inspector Rahul Khatal.





The Times of India, April 11, 2015

Man accused of sending terror email after blast acquitted

 Ejaz Shaikh

Mateen Hafeez





Mumbai:  A Sewri court on Tuesday discharged Ejaz Shaikh (28), a suspected Indian Mujahideen (IM) operative, in a case of sending terror email after the 2010 Varanasi bomb blast.
Shaikh, a Pune resident, was first arrested on September 6, 2014, from outside Saharanpur station in UP by the Delhi Police's special cell. Later, he was taken into custody by the Maharashtra ATS for his alleged role in providing logistics in the 2010 Pune German Bakery blast, the 137 Mumbai triple blasts and the Varanasi email case. On February 6, this year, Mumbai crime branch's cyber crime investigation cell (CCIC) took Shakih in custody for allegedly sending another terror email after a blast outside Delhi's Jama Masjid.

“During the investigation, the police did not find evidence against Shaikh and hence we filed an application under Section 169 of the Code of Criminal Procedure requesting the court to discharge him from the case,“ confirmed a senior ATS officer. Shaikh's lawyer, advocate Tahawwar Rana, said, “We have been saying my client is innocent. Today , the court has discharged him.“

On December 7, 2010, a day after the completion of 18 years of Babri Masjid's dem olition, an email was sent from Mansarovar building, Section 17, Vashi, claiming responsibility of the Varanasi blast. The sender had hacked into the unsecured WiFi of the sixth floor residents. The email was sent with a subject, “Indian Mujahideen ­ Let's feel the pain together“, and the mail focused mainly on the Babri Masjid demolition and Ayodhya verdict.

The police had earlier said that besides sending emails, Sheikh used to provide logistics to the IM men in India and prepared fake identities needed by them to procure mobile SIM cards, collecting foreign money transfers, obtaining rooms on rent and even in getting enrolled in professional educational institutions as a cover, police said. Police said he was never present during the actual crime.

The Times of India, Apirl 8, 2015

Charas-tainted police officer ratted on meow meow cop

Mateen Hafeez

Mumbai: 



A suspended police inspector who had been caught for possession of charas was the one to provide information on the possession of mephedrone by constable Dharma Kalokhe of the Marine Drive police station. The officer also gave information on Kalokhe's lover Baby Patankar, who is a drug dealer, to the police.
Investigators suspect that the informant inspector himself had been caught because of a tip-off by Patankar and so, wanted to settle scores. The police had seized 12 kg of mephedrone worth Rs 2.4 crore from Kalokhe's almirah at the Marine Drive police station.

“While going through the call data records of Baby, the police found a number that emerged in the CDR frequently and when the officers inquired about the number it turned out to be of a suspended inspector's,“ an officer said. “When he was summoned for inquiry , he admitted that he had befriended Baby and would also take her for Vipassana programmes.“
Investigators found that Kalokhe would act as a liaison person for Patankar during her deals, said officers.

The Satara police had arrested Kalokhe on March 9, from his hometown in that district and recovered 110 kg of the banned narcotic from his home. He was later handed over to the city police.
Kalokhe told his interrogators that he had known Patankar since 1996, and in the recent past had helped her get drugs.

The Times of India, April 7, 2015

Kripa assets case: Sr cops give okay for filing of chargesheet

Mateen Hafeez





Mumbai: The economic offences wing (EOW) is likely to file a chargesheet on Saturday against former state minister Kripashankar singh and some of his relatives in connection with a multi-crore disproportionate assets case. Senior officers have given the go-ahead for the chargesheet to be filed, it was learnt on Friday . A notice to Singh and his family has been served asking them to be present at an anti-corruption court on Saturday.

 On February 22, 2012, the Bombay high court ordered the police to attach several properties belonging to Singh and his kin and investigate allegations of criminal miscon duct and disproportionate assets. A resident of the city had filed a PIL before the court alleging Singh and his relatives had disproportionate assets worth over Rs 320 crore.
“We are likely to file chargesheet on Saturday in an anticorruption court,“ an officer related to the inquiry said.

The PIL mentioned around 15 properties registered in the name of Singh, his wife Malti Devi, son Narendra, daughter Sunita and son-in-law Vijay Pratap Singh. The properties in the name of Singh's son in the PIL were said to be worth Rs 274 crore, but Narendra said the real estate worth over Rs 148 crore did not belong to him.

“I still believe in the police agency and I want to know whether the cops have found Rs 370 crore or not which was mentioned in the PIL and whether the allegations levelled against us were true or false,“ he said. “And if it's false, will the petitioner be punished for false allegations and torturing the whole family even though only one of them is a public servant. There is an SC order saying when you are not a public servant, the case against you doesn't stand.“

Cartridges case
On January 20, the crime branch had filed a chargesheet against Kripashankar Singh in connection with a case of illegal possession of firearm cartridges. TNN





 The Times of India, April 4, 2015

Bodo militants arrested in Navi Mumbai

 

Mateen Hafeez





Navi Mumbai: The state antiterrorism squad arrested three National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) militants from Navi Mumbai on Friday evening. The militants are suspected to have played a key role in the Assam massacre on December 23 last year, in which over 74 people were killed. They were working in a cold storage in Taloja, said police sources.The trio, suspected to be commanders of the outfit, was wanted in a case of kidnapping, criminal conspiracy and waging war against the nation in Sonitpur district, Assam.

 Himanshu Roy , additional director-general of police and ATS chief, confirmed the arrests.“We got information that they were hiding in Navi Mumbai, and in a joint operation, arrested the suspects. The ATS is in touch with Assam police,“ said Roy . Those arrested include Bisho alias Ansai Songa Basumatary (22), Swamkhwr Basumatary (20) and Purno Narzary (19). They will be produced before a court on Saturday .“As per information, they were staying separately at Pawanegaon and Tondregaon but working together at Taloja in a cold storage. We kept an eye, monitored their activities and gathered information before arresting them,“ said an officer. The trio is also wanted in a case registered under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.





The Times of India, April 4, 2014

Solar power delivers hot water to prisoners

Mateen Hafeez I TNN

Mumbai: 



Authorities at the Byculla women's prison have tied up with a solar power firm to provide hot water baths for ill prisoners.

 

“Earlier, if doctors would advice warm water for certain prisoners, the jail kitchen would be used to heat water.Now, a private firm has installed a solar electricity system, with which a water tank is heated,“ said a jail officer.Inspector general of prisons (south region) Bipin Kumar Singh made it clear that the facility is only for “prisoners who are patients“.

Around 190 women are lodged in the prison. Some are pregnant and many have children aged below six years. Expecting women and children often require hot water. An official said the facility has been extended to children as well.

The facility follows the in stallation of CCTV cameras and jammers to make prisons safer.
No long ago, 97 CCTV cam eras were installed at Arthur Road Jail. Before this, the only time CCTV coverage was provided in a jail in recent memory was in the case of executed 2611 convict Ajmal Kasab. Also, 72 cameras have been installed in Taloja jail.

The CCTV initiative is part of an overall `e-prison' concept. This includes the provision of over 200 laptops and desktops, and 100 display screens to various courts, the home department and jails, to enable court hearings and trials through video conferencing.

“The video conferencing facility is already sparing us the burden of prisoners' escorts,“ said Singh.

The Times of India, April 3, 2015