'Cops aided grabbers in snatching my Rs 50 crore bungalow'

Few houses have seen as much sorrow and betrayal as bungalow no 167A in Sundar Nagar It all started when owner Roque DSouza 66 allegedly strangled his wife to death in the house While he was behind bars his own brother connived with the police to wrest control of the house claimed Roques lawyer alleging that they handed over the property to the local land mafia who have set up a Chinese food stall in the prime propertyThe owner of the sprawling 6000sqft villa mdash worth Rs 50 crore mdash Roque Dsouza is currently lodged in Arther Road jail under trial for the murder of his wife in July 2017 Meanwhile his house has been turned into a Chinese food delivery business without his permission allegedly taken over by a nexus between his brother the Vakola police and the current occupiers whom the Roques lawyer has labelled as land mafiaRoque DSouza is currently lodged in Arthur Road jail for the murder of his wife Celine DSouzaThe police forced Roques sisterinlaw to hand over the keys in the police station and then handed over possession to the local land mafia The entire trespass took place with the help of the Vakola police alleged Roques lawyer Prashant Pandey who also claimed that the police had framed his client for the murder of his wifeWhen Roque went to prison Celines sister Joyce Mascarenhas took the keys of the house and arranged the funeral Not a single person from Roques family came for my sisters funeral I did all the rituals on my own I had the keys and the police informed me that I should not hand them over to anyone Joyce recalledBrothers roleRoques brother Joseph Dsouza turned up a fortnight after the funeral At first he said he just wanted to check the house and verify whether the property taxes had been paid Then two days later he demanded the key from Joyce My sister married Roque 36 years ago and he had been residing there for more than 60 years The man Joseph who did not bother to attend the last rites of his sisterinlaw was here all of a sudden asking for the keys to the house I flatly refused to give them to him and said if he wanted them he would have to come with me to the police station There was no sign of him for the next 11 months said JoycePrem ChandranShe alleged that in June this year Joseph broke into the house Three days after this Joseph went to Vakola police station asking for the keys The cops called me to the police station and I handed over the keys to Joseph in front of them recalled Joyce sharing with midday a letter from the police station confirming that she had handed over the keys before the copsNow I am surprised to see the land mafia illegally occupying the bungalow are running a kitchen there from where they supply Chinese food to nearby offices I think Roques brother and the Vakola police were handinglove in this matter she allegedAbid Ali Mushtaque TanajiCops stalled probeWhen Roque was unaware of these developments until October 10 said his lawyer Pandey Once he found out though Roque wrote several times to the Vakola police to ask for an investigation but the probe did not move an inch Fed up with the attitude of the cops Roque has now moved the sessions courtPandey added The judge accepted the urgency for inspection by Roque and his lawyer along with the Vakola police on November 1 Even from the panchnama it was evident that the Vakola police had allowed the said trespassers to enter the premises These trespassers openly flaunt their good rapport with the police in the courtroom during the hearings I hope the court will serve justice and take the trespassers and corrupt police officers to taskPrem Chandran and Abid Ali Mushtaque Tanaji are running a Chinese food delivery business at the bungalowThe other sideRefuting all allegations Kailashchandra Awhad senior inspector of Vakola police station said All the allegations are baseless I dont know Roques sisterin law and she never visited the police station Also no keys were exchanged at the police station We are inquiring into the matter following the courts orderWhen informed that Joyce had a letter confirming that the keys were handed over to Joseph at Vakola police station Awhad said I am not aware of this One of the current occupiers of the property Abid Ali told midday I bought this property from Roques brother Joseph in 2005 Everyone is aware of this Since his younger brother is in jail this whole controversy has been created for no reason I have all the documents to prove this and the matter is sub judice His partner Prem Chandran echoed We are the owners of the property We purchased it from Roque and his brotherThe prime property is now stuffed with furniture and cooking materialsRoque is lyingInterestingly Roques brother Joseph said We sold the property to Mr Abid in 2005 Everyone is aware of this and my brother is lying When questioned how Roque continued to live in the house till his arrest he claimed they were the structural owners but could not explain whatthis meantSr PI to face probeAdvocate Prashant Pandey said I have sent a complaint to the police commissioner and to the zonal DCP Anil Kumbhare mentioning that the senior PI of Vakola police is also involved and is shielding the land mafia The complaint was given in the last week of October but there was no response When contacted by midday Addl CP west Manoj Kumar Sharma said I will thoroughly inquire into the case Currently the matter is sub judiceAlso Read Mumbai Architect finalised Mayor gives inputs for bungalow plan Catch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates