Businessman gets extortion calls- Arrested men were recruited by fugitive Suresh Pujari: Police

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“Interrogation of the accused indicates at least half of them were approached by Pujari’s recruiter while they were lodged in the Aadharwadi Central Jail in Kalyan. The recruiter gave them a number to call once they were out of jail and promised them well-paying work. Those who were recruited then drafted in the other accused, who are their friends. We are finding out more details about the recruitment process. The man who recruited them was recently released from jail after completing his sentence and we are on his trail as well,” said a Crime Branch officer.

The Crime Branch has not ruled out insider involvement in the crime. “When the accused made threat calls to the victim, they mentioned very specific details about his family, which only an insider could have provided. We are investigating whether someone close to the victim provided these details to the accused,” the officer added.

Meanwhile, the investigation has indicated that Pujari had divided the gang into three modules, so that even if one module was busted, the other two would not be at risk of apprehension.

“One module took care of obtaining information about the target, the second was tasked with arranging money for the job and the third was tasked with executing the crime. Pujari interacted personally with the leaders of each module,” an officer said.

The accused have been remanded in Crime Branch’s custody till October 21.

mumbai.newsline@expressindia.com