The police arrested five accused for allegedly making extortion calls to a south Mumbai-based businessman and firing at a Bhiwandi hotel employee.
A former caterer with the canteen located in the Mumbai sessions court complex, a one-handed sharpshooter, a 19-year-old wanting to earn a quick buck and a fruit vendor were among the members of a module of the Suresh Pujari gang busted by the Mumbai Police Crime Branch on Friday.
The police arrested five accused for allegedly making extortion calls to a south Mumbai-based businessman and firing at a Bhiwandi hotel employee. The interrogation of the men revealed that Harish Kotian (30), one of the arrested accused in the case, was the main accused and had provided details about the businessman who was eventually threatened.
Kotian, the police have found, was working as a caterer at the Sessions court in south Mumbai for several years. “As part of his job, he came in touch with several henchmen of Suresh Pujari who would come to the court for their hearings. Through them, Kotian came in contact with Pujari,” said a senior Crime Branch officer.
“Nearly two-three years ago, he quit his work, got training as a masseur and began working as a private masseur. Besides, he would scout for ‘rich people’ who could be threatened to pay extortion money. This was Kotian’s only job, to use his network to scout for people who could be threatened and pass on the names to Pujari. In order to lure him, right at the outset, Pujari sent him Rs 50,000,” the officer added.
The police found that the details of the south Mumbai businessman were also given to Pujari by Kotian. After getting the names, Pujari got in touch with his henchman Sanket Dalvi alias Sandy. Dalvi, who was earlier arrested in an attempt to murder case, contacted Aniket Thakur (25) and Noormohammad Khan (20), who he had met behind bars. “Thakur, a sharpshooter, lost his left hand in a train accident. He just uses his right hand to fire. Khan, who sold fruits for a living, was the one who fired at the Bhiwandi hotel employee,” the officer added, explaining the roles of the accused. Prathamesh Kadam (22) reportedly left behind a chit of paper in the businessman’s shop, asking him to make the payment.
“Of the module, Kotian and Dalvi were in direct touch with Pujari. We have also got some information about Pujari,” the officer said. Suresh Pujari, is one of the few underworld gangsters, who, along with Ravi Pujari, is ‘active’ in extortion rackets. Long believed to be holed up in South East Asia, Pujari, who hails from Ghatkopar, was working with underworld gangster Ravi Pujari in the past. Earlier, he operated primarily out of Mumbai. When the Mumbai Police Crime Branch started going after him, he started operating out of Ulhasnagar. Eventually in 2007, he fled India and continued making extortion calls.
mohamed.thaver@expressindia.com
Mohamed Thaver is a highly specialized journalist with the Expertise and Authority required to report on complex law enforcement and legal issues. With a career dedicated to the crime beat for over a decade, his work provides readers with informed and trustworthy insights into Maharashtra's security and justice systems.
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The police arrested five accused for allegedly making extortion calls to a south Mumbai-based businessman and firing at a Bhiwandi hotel employee.
