One more accused has been arrested in connection with the kidnapping and murder of Ashok Dhodi, a Shiv Sena leader from Maharashtra's Palghar district, police said on Friday, reported news agency PTI. The police have so far arrested seven persons, including the victim's brother Avinash Dhodi, for the crime that took place in January, while two more accused remain at large, District Superintendent of Police Yatish Deshmukh said, reported PTI. Manoj Bhavarsingh Rajput (34) from Shahapur in Thane district was apprehended on Thursday, he said. As per the case details, the victim, Ashok Dhodi (52), had gone missing on January 19, and his body was found days later after police managed to zero in on his car, which was in a water-filled quarry in neighbouring Gujarat, reported PTI. According to the police, Avinash Dhodi was angry as the victim had filed an application with the Vevji Gram Panchayat to cancel his house lease, following which he was evicted, reported PTI. On January 19, when Ashok Dhodi was travelling to his house from Dahanu, the accused and his accomplices intercepted the car at Vevji Ghat and abducted him. The accused subsequently murdered Ashok Dhodi and threw his body and car into a water-filled quarry at Sarigam Wadiapada in Gujarat, reported PTI. An FIR was registered with the Gholwad police station under sections 140 (3), 140 (1) (kidnapping or abducting to murder or for ransom, etc.), 351 (2) (criminal intimidation), 103 (1) (murder) and 238 (A) (kidnap) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on January 27, reported PTI. The police arrested the main accused, Avinash Dhodi, from Silvassa in the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli earlier this month. (With inputs from PTI)
13 June,2025 02:19 PM IST | Palghar | mid-day online correspondentThe Borivali police have arrested a 39-year-old habitual conman from Ulwe for allegedly duping jewellers by selling or mortgaging high-quality, gold-coated fake jewellery stamped with forged hallmark symbols. The accused, identified as Rakesh Bhimsen Bagla, was apprehended following an investigation into a Rs 19.43 lakh fraud reported by a Borivli-based jeweller. According to police sources, Bagla hails from Bathinda, Punjab, and had been living alone in various parts of Mumbai after leaving his parental home. Around four years ago, he married a woman from Assam, whose father is reportedly a jailer in Guwahati. Last month, Bagla allegedly sold fake gold-coated jewellery bearing a forged hallmark to a Borivali jeweller for Rs 5 lakh. He then used the money to purchase real gold. The fraud came to light when the jeweller melted the ornaments and found them to be counterfeit. The total loss was later pegged at Rs 19.43 lakh. The complainant, a 51-year-old jeweller with a store on SV Road, Borivali West, reported that on May 9, around 2.45 pm, he had gone home for lunch. At approximately 3.51 pm, a female sales executive called to inform him that an unknown man had visited the shop with a 51.050-grammes gold chain marked with hallmark HUID-9AYIE4, seeking to exchange it for new jewellery for his wife. The staff accepted the chain and generated a bill for 44 grammes of new gold ornaments. The customer identified himself as Vikrant Thakur and claimed he would submit his PAN card later. When the jeweller returned around 5.30 pm and inspected the chain, he grew suspicious. He removed two links and melted them, revealing a copper core. Realising the jewellery was fake, he reviewed CCTV footage and approached the Borivli police station. A case was registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The investigation, led by Senior Inspector Maloji Shinde and PSI Rajesh Kadam, was conducted under the supervision of DCP Anand Bhoite (Zone 11) and ACP Sunil Jaybhaye. “We scanned CCTV footage and examined call data records (CDRs),” a senior police officer said. “One common mobile number emerged, but the accused had been frequently changing SIM cards, using more than eight, making it difficult to trace him.” The investigation eventually led the team to Ulwe, Navi Mumbai, where Bagla was arrested last week. During interrogation, he confessed to committing similar frauds in Thane and Taloja. He had previously been arrested in 2019 for a similar offence. Following his earlier arrest, Bagla relocated from Andheri to Navi Mumbai, changed his name, and began living in rented accommodations to avoid detection. Police believe he sourced the counterfeit gold-coated jewellery with realistic hallmark stamps from Uttar Pradesh. A search is underway for his suppliers. “He would either sell or mortgage the fake jewellery. Many jewellers, misled by the hallmark and appearance, accepted it without thorough checks. When the mortgage period ended and the ornaments were melted, the fraud was discovered, but by then, Bagla had vanished,” the officer said In the Borivli case as well, the realistic appearance of the jewellery initially fooled the sales executive. “We suspect he may have committed similar offences in other states too, given his modus operandi,” the officer added. Bagla was produced in court and has been remanded to judicial custody.
13 June,2025 10:03 AM IST | Mumbai | Samiullah KhanActor Dino Morea finally appeared before the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) office in Mumbai on Thursday to record his statement in connection with the multi-crore Mithi River desilting scam. Last Friday, the sleuths of ED conducted search operations across 18 locations in Mumbai, Kochi, and Thrissur. Subsequently, both - accused and suspected individuals - were directed to appear before the ED’s Mumbai office for questioning. Actor Dino Morea appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Mumbai on Thursday to record his statement in connection with the multi-crore Mithi River desilting scam. Last week, ED conducted searches across 18 locations in Mumbai, Kochi, and Thrissur, seizing crucial… pic.twitter.com/H06BKW0Duh — Mid Day (@mid_day) June 12, 2025 As part of the ongoing money laundering probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, the Central agency seized several crucial items during the search operations. These include bank documents, digital devices, and Rs 7 lakh in cash. In addition, the ED has frozen 22 bank accounts, one demat account, and fixed deposits (FDRs), with the total value of the frozen/seized assets exceeding Rs 1.25 crore. Officials confirmed that several incriminating documents and digital devices found during the searches are expected to play a significant role in the next phase of the investigation. The ED case stems from a Mumbai Police Economic Offences Wing (EOW) FIR filed in May against 13 persons, including contractors and civic officials, for an alleged Rs 65.54 crore scam in tenders awarded from 2017-2023 for desilting of the Mithi river which flows through Mumbai and acts as a stormwater drainage channel for the metro city. The Uddhav Thackeray-led undivided Shiv Sena controlled the cash-rich BMC from 1997 till the party's split in 2022. After the expiry of the general body in 2022, the civic body was controlled by the state government, which was then headed by Eknath Shinde. It was alleged by the police in its complaint that BMC officials tailored the tender for the desilting contract in such a way that it benefited a particular supplier of machinery, and the contractors reportedly generated fraudulent bills for transporting the sludge out of Mumbai. The 49-year-old actor and his brother were questioned by the Mumbai Police EOW in this case last month also. The Morea brothers, it is understood, were questioned by the police about their alleged links with alleged middleman Ketan Kadam, arrested in the case along with another accused, Jai Joshi, apart from some financial transactions made in a company linked to Santino.
12 June,2025 02:17 PM IST | Mumbai | Diwakar SharmaAn official on Thursday said that the police have seized hydroponic ganja valued at Rs 3.9 lakh and arrested a man in this connection from Maharashtra's Thane city, reported news agency PTI. A police team noticed the man loitering suspiciously near a hotel on Shil-Kalyan Road on Tuesday evening and apprehended him. During checking, the police recovered 130 gm of hydroponic ganja from the accused, identified as Dhiren Wadhwa, resident of Ulhasnagar, senior police inspector Sachin Gaikwad said, reported PTI. The police also seized a scooter, a weighing scale, a mobile phone and some cash, all collectively valued at Rs 1.24 lakh, he said. "The evidence clearly indicates he was in possession of the drugs for the purpose of sale," Gaikwad said, reported PTI. An FIR has been registered against the accused at Shil-Daighar police station under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, he said. "We are probing further into his network to identify the source of the contraband and determine whom he was planning to sell it," the official added. Ganja worth Rs 6.89 lakh seized from taxi; four arrested In another case, the officials on June 4 said that police have seized 34 kg of ganja valued at Rs 6.89 lakh from a taxi in Maharashtra's Thane district and arrested four persons in this connection, reported news agency PTI. Acting on a tip-off, the police intercepted the taxi carrying three persons at Mahajanwadi in the Mira Gaothan area on May 29. "A thorough search of the vehicle led to the recovery of 34.484 kg of ganja," Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar Police's Assistant Commissioner of Police, Dr Vijaykumar Marathe said, reported PTI. The seized contraband is estimated to be valued at Rs 6,89,680 in the illegal market, according to police. The three taxi occupants, including its driver, all hailing from neighbouring Mumbai, were arrested. The police also seized Rs 7,500 cash from the accused and impounded the vehicle, the official said, reported PTI. During the investigation, the police arrested another person, a resident of Kamothe in Navi Mumbai, who allegedly supplied the contraband to the other accused, he said. (With inputs from PTI)
12 June,2025 12:17 PM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondentThe officials on Thursday said that the Thane police have registered a case against eight individuals associated with an investment firm for allegedly cheating 78 investors of Rs 3.7 crore after promising them high returns, reported news PTI. The firm opened its office in the Dombivli area of Maharashtra's Thane district some years back and began marketing various investment schemes that promised lucrative interest rates. The accused, including partners and employees of the firm, lured people to invest money for good returns, an official. The victims invested money in the firm's schemes between 2021 and 2022. "The accused issued certificates to investors, acknowledging their investments and promising attractive returns. However, after receiving the funds, they failed to deliver the agreed interest and also did not return the principal amount to the investors," the official said, reported PTI. One of the 78 victims subsequently lodged a police complaint on behalf of the group. The police on Tuesday registered an FIR against eight persons associated with the firm under sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, and provisions of the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act, the official said, reported PTI. "We are currently probing the case. As of now, no arrest has been made, but all the accused have been identified and we are verifying the financial trail. Action will be taken as per law once we complete the preliminary inquiry," the official added. (With inputs from PTI)
12 June,2025 11:51 AM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondentEven as ripples caused by the murder of Indore businessman Raja Raghuvanshi are yet to subside, a case has surfaced in Maharashtra's Sangli where a 27-year-old woman allegedly hacked her husband to death just a fortnight after their wedding, reported news agency PTI. The woman attacked her 53-year-old husband, Anil Lokhande, around 12.30 am on Wednesday after he insisted on consummating their 15-day-old marriage, police said, adding the accused has been arrested, reported PTI. The couple resided in Kupwad tehsil of Sangli district, a police official said. It was Lokhande's second marriage as his first wife had died of cancer, he said. Lokhande's wife was irked by his insistence on consummating the marriage, leading to a heated exchange between them, according to police. "In a fit of rage, the accused, identified as Radhika, fatally attacked her husband with an axe when he was asleep in bed," an official from Kupwad MIDC police station said, reported PTI. The woman was later arrested and booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, he said, adding further probe was on into the case. Indore-based transport businessman Raja Raghuvanshi was allegedly murdered during his honeymoon trip to Meghalaya last month allegedly at the behest of his wife Sonam, as per police, reported PTI. The police suspect Sonam hatched a conspiracy to murder Raja in connivance with her alleged lover. Sonam and four others have been arrested so far in connection with the murder. (With inputs from PTI)
12 June,2025 10:54 AM IST | Sangli | mid-day online correspondentThe Railway Police’s Local Crime Branch (LCB) have cracked the Bandra-Jaipur Express robbery case that took place last week between Goregaon and Jogeshwari stations in Mumbai. Investigations have revealed the involvement of Haryana’s notorious ‘Fasi’ gang. The LCB have arrested one of the gang members and are on the lookout for the rest, said senior inspector Vijay Khedekar of LCB. The team used CCTV footage and field intelligence to track the suspects. According to sources, the incident occurred last week when Ayub Khan, 36, a construction businessman residing in Jogeshwari, was returning to Mumbai from Rajasthan on the Jaipur-Bandra Terminus Express with his wife, Heena, 30. Their two young children were travelling on an air-conditioned (AC) coach compartment and were to alight at Andheri. After the train crossed Borivli and slowed down, four unidentified men dressed in khaki shirts and trousers approached Hina and told her to move the family’s luggage to the doorway, stating that Andheri station was approaching. One of the accused also helped her shift the luggage. The compartment was nearly empty at the time as most passengers had alighted at other stations. Khan, who was in the washroom in the meanwhile, saw three other men standing near his luggage. He felt something amiss and told the accused to step aside. At this point, one of them pulled out a knife and threatened him. However, he and his wife resisted and fended off the robbers. While Hina tried to grab one of the robbers, Khan physically confronted another one. Despite their efforts, the robbers managed to flee by jumping off the train between Goregaon and Jogeshwari stations. However, they succeeded in snatching away a trolley bag from the couple. It contained jewellery and valuables worth Rs 7 lakh, including cash worth Rs 1.5 lakh in Indian currency and another 1 lakh in Saudi Riyals. The complainant also managed to snatch a bag from one of the accused. However, the bag contained some clothes and bundles of beedis, along with a packet of gutkha. The Borivli Railway Police registered a first information report (FIR) under sections of the Railway Act against unknown people after the couple approached the police. The brazen robbery aboard a moving train has triggered serious concerns, prompting the formation of multiple police teams to trace the culprits. At the scene of the crime, the police discovered a tobacco packet and a bundle of beedis. The packet had Gujarati lettering, which led investigators to Surat for further inquiry.
11 June,2025 11:14 PM IST | Mumbai | Samiullah KhanA 28-year-old woman allegedly died by suicide in Sangli district of Maharashtra. Her parents have alleged that her in-laws harassed her for dowry, police said on Wednesday. The woman’s husband and his parents have been arrested in connection with the case, reported PTI. The woman had been married for four years to a merchant navy employee. She ended her life in Kupwad town on June 6. The woman was four months pregnant at the time of her death, said an officer from MIDC Kupwad Police Station. In his complaint, the woman’s father alleged that she was subjected to repeated physical and mental harassment by her in-laws, who demanded that she bring money from her parents for the construction of a house. The police have arrested the woman’s husband, mother-in-law, and father-in-law for alleged abetment to suicide and other relevant offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Further investigation is underway, the officer added. Man kills wife, attempts to end his life in Maharashtra's Thane A man allegedly killed his 34-year-old wife with a sharp weapon at their home in Koparkhairane near Maharashtra's Thane district, before attempting to end his life on Wednesday, the police said, reported the PTI. An official said that a police team reached the spot after neighbours of the couple alerted police. "We spotted the body of woman with injury marks. Her husband tried to commit suicide. He was admitted to a hospital," the official said, adding that no arrest has been made so far, while a case has been registered under section 103 (Punishment for murder) under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). The official said that the woman worked as a nurse and her husband had been unemployed for sometime. Further investigations were underway, he said. Man kills wife, ends his life in Worli Meanwhile, in an another similar incident, the police said that a 60-year-old man shot and killed his wife and allegedly committed suicide using a countrymade firearm in Worli on Sunday, reported the PTI. The incident occurred around 6 am in a residential building in the Siddharth Nagar area of Worli in central Mumbai, an official said. He said that the man shot his wife before turning the weapon on himself, according to the PTI. The official said that he lived with his wife, son and daughter-in-law in a flat, and there had been frequent quarrels between the father and son about living separately, as per the PTI He said the father-son duo had drunken altercations, and the woman sided with her son. One such argument had taken place on Saturday evening, and he was upset with his wife. The official said he woke up in the morning and took out a countrymade firearm, shot at his wife and later shot himself, the news agency reported on Monday. The son and daughter-in-law woke up to the sounds of the gunshots and alerted the police, he said, adding that the bodies were sent for post-mortem. A case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and further probe was underway, the official said, adding that further probe was ongoing. (With PTI inputs)
11 June,2025 09:44 PM IST | Sangli | mid-day online correspondentA man allegedly killed his 34-year-old wife with a sharp weapon at their home in Koparkhairane near Maharashtra's Thane district, before attempting to end his life on Wednesday, the police said, reported the PTI. An official said that a police team reached the spot after neighbours of the couple alerted police. "We spotted the body of woman with injury marks. Her husband tried to commit suicide. He was admitted to a hospital," the official said, adding that no arrest has been made so far, while a case has been registered under section 103 (Punishment for murder) under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). The official said that the woman worked as a nurse and her husband had been unemployed for sometime. Further investigations were underway, he said. Man kills wife, ends his life in Worli Meanwhile, in an another similar incident, the police said that a 60-year-old man shot and killed his wife and allegedly committed suicide using a countrymade firearm in Worli on Sunday, reported the PTI. The incident occurred around 6 am in a residential building in the Siddharth Nagar area of Worli in central Mumbai, an official said. He said that the man shot his wife before turning the weapon on himself, according to the PTI. The official said that he lived with his wife, son and daughter-in-law in a flat, and there had been frequent quarrels between the father and son about living separately, as per the PTI He said the father-son duo had drunken altercations, and the woman sided with her son. One such argument had taken place on Saturday evening, and he was upset with his wife. The official said he woke up in the morning and took out a countrymade firearm, shot at his wife and later shot himself, the news agency reported on Monday. The son and daughter-in-law woke up to the sounds of the gunshots and alerted the police, he said, adding that the bodies were sent for post-mortem. A case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and further probe was underway, the official said, adding that further probe was ongoing. (with PTI inputs)
11 June,2025 09:16 PM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondentThe Navi Mumbai Police in Maharashtra on Wednesday took into custody Naveen Chichkar, who was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) last month after being deported from Malaysia, in drugs smuggling case, officials said, reported the PTI. The NCB had earlier said that the kingpin behind a transnational drug trafficking syndicate, whose name had cropped up in a US cocaine smuggling case, was deported from Malaysia to India. Chichkar is allegedly the main accused in the case of seizure of hydro weed in Navi Mumbai recently, they said. Chichkar (35) was wanted in multiple cases registered by the anti-narcotics agency. The cartel operated by Chichkar sold drugs valued at Rs 1,128 crore in India, including cocaine and hybrid strain hydroponic weed that were sourced from the US via cargo shipments, an official earlier said, according to the PTI. After being brought back to India, he was lodged at the Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai. The Navi Mumbai police on Wednesday took his custody in connection with a case registered with them, Assistant Commissioner of Police Bhausaheb Dhole told reporters. "The Navi Mumbai police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) registered a case on April 14 at the Nerul police station after receiving a tip-off about the possession and distribution of hydroponic marijuana (hydro weed). As of now, 32 individuals have been named as accused in the case," as per the PTI. The police have arrested 18 of the accused so far, he said. "In this case, we have already seized 2.5 to 3 kilograms of hydro weed and about 1 kilogram of Indian marijuana. We are investigating further leads that may help uncover the full extent of this drug network," the official said, the news agency reported on Wednesday. After Chichkar's deportation and arrest last month, the NCB had said the involvement of the international drug syndicate came to light after the seizure of 200 grams of cocaine hidden in a projector from a parcel being sent from Mumbai to Australia through a courier firm on January 21 this year. In a follow-up operation of the case, the NCB seized 11.540 kilograms of cocaine, 4.9 kilograms of cannabis and 5.5 kilograms of cannabis gummies from the house of one of the members of the syndicate in Navi Mumbai, an NCB official had said. During the investigation, it came to light that a well-oiled international syndicate was involved in trafficking cocaine from the United States of America to India, and also in its distribution in India and outside, the official said. The involvement of Clearing House Agents (CHA) and hawala operators also came to the surface during the probe, he added, reported the PTI. (with PTI inputs)
11 June,2025 07:22 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentThe Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said that it has provisionally attached properties worth Rs. 33.89 crore belonging to Jayesh Vinodkumar Tanna, his family members, and associated firms under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The attachment was made by the ED’s Mumbai Zonal Office on June 10. The attached assets include agricultural land, residential flats, commercial shops, and a bungalow located in different areas of Mumbai and Ahilyanagar (previously Ahmednagar) district of Maharashtra. An official statement said that the ED began its investigation based on several FIRs filed by Mumbai Police against Jayesh Tanna, Deep Tanna, and others. These individuals are promoters of the Sai Group of Entities. Police have already filed chargesheets in most of these cases. The ED’s investigation found that the Sai Group misused funds collected from buyers of flats and shops for personal use. These funds were meant for redevelopment projects in D N Nagar, Andheri, Kandivali, and Goregaon in Mumbai. "Due of the mismanagement, the projects were not completed, causing a loss of about Rs. 85.75 crore to buyers, original society members (tenants), and investors," the statement said. Earlier, on March 5, 2025, the ED had searched 9 locations in Mumbai related to the Sai Group and its promoters. During the search, they found several incriminating documents and details of illegally acquired properties, it said. The investigation is still ongoing, the statement said.
11 June,2025 02:58 PM IST | Mumbai | Diwakar SharmaADVERTISEMENT
