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ACB Gets Go-Ahead To Proceed Against Mazgaon Court Additional Sessions Judge Aejazuddin Kazi As Corruption Probe Deepens

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Mumbai: The Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) has obtained permission to proceed against the Additional Sessions Judge of Mazgaon court, Aejazuddin S. Kazi, who has been booked for corruption charges. ACB has so far obtained his voice sample and also seized the mobile phone he was using.

The agency on Thursday opposed the bail plea of Chandrakant Vasudev, stenographer posted at Mazgaon court, arrested on corruption charges. The agency claimed that there is prima facie evidence showing active involvement of him and Additional Sessions Judge, Aejazuddin S. Kazi in the corruption case.

The prosecution on Thursday in its reply to Vasudev’s bail application informed the special court that the Bombay high court has last month allowed the agency to proceed against Kazi as per law.

After the high court’s permission, Kazi was summoned to join the probe, wherein his voice sample has been taken on December 8. Kazi’s phone has also been seized after he produced it before the investigating officer. Also the agency has also recorded his statement and his house was also searched on December 10, the prosecution informed the court in its reply.

While opposing Vasudev’s bail plea, the prosecution contended that, ‘investigation into the registered case is still ongoing, and prima facie evidence has been obtained showing the active involvement of Vasudev and Kazi in the crime.’

Besides, the prosecution claimed that they are probing the involvement any other public servant. Besides, the prosecution has also raised apprehension that if released on bail Vasudev may obstruct the probe and may attempt to destroy evidence.

Vasudev’s defence lawyer on the other hand has contended that for further investigation, his detention is not necessary and he may be released on bail imposing conditions. The court is likely to pass order on the bail plea om Friday.

Vasudev was arrested on November 10 for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs15 lakhs in exchange for a favourable verdict from Kazi in a dispute related to property.

It is alleged that it all started from on September 09, the complainant’s office associate was present at the Civil Sessions Court, Court No. 14 for the hearing of the petition involving the complainant. At that time, Vasudev contacted the office associate in the court’s washroom and told him to “do something for Saheb (the Judge), and the order will be in your favor”.

Further, Vasudev contacted the complainant and asked him to meet him at a café. There he allegedly demanded Rs 10 lakh for himself and 15 lakh for the judge, however, the complainant refused. The agency alleged that as the complainant did not accept the offer, Vasudev contacted complainant’s office associate who used to attend court hearings, on WhatsApp and said that if the money was not paid, the order would be against them, police said. The complainant then approached the ACB and after the verification a trap was laid.

The prosecution has claimed that after the trap it has come on record that Vasudev contacted Kazi on call seeking confirmation of the bribe amount. It is claimed that after Kazi’s consent Vasudev accepted bribe amount, thereafter Kazi instructed him to deliver the amount at his residence. For the prosecution, the said conversation is crucial to prove the allegations against the two.

“A notice was served to judge Kazi recently as per the provisions of CrPC and his statement was recorded. We have also seized his mobile phone and have sent it for data analysis to ascertain if anything has been deleted or destroyed from the phone. Once we get the mobile analysis report we will decide further course of action. At this moment we will not be able to comment further as the case is still under investigation,” said an ACB official, requesting anonymity.

Crime

Mumbai Cyber ​​fraud in the name of online gaming, cricket betting and casino busted, five women also involved in interstate racket, transactions worth over Rs 25 crore

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The Mumbai police have busted a gang involved in cyber crime cases, which was involved in fraud through multiple apps, including a gaming app.The Dongri police had registered a case under sections 319(4), 317, 3(5) of the Indian Penal Code, 2023 and sections 66(k), 66(d) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The investigation, carried out under a plan based on reliable and confidential information received by the Dongri Police Station Cyber ​​Team, has uncovered an organised network providing mule bank accounts for cyber fraud.

During the investigation, it was revealed that bank accounts were opened in the names of the victims of financial fraud by luring them with profit and the passbooks, debit cards, cheque books, SIM cards, etc. of these accounts were taken into their possession and used for financial transactions of cyber fraud. The scope of the investigation was also expanded to Govindi, Mankhurd, Dongri areas of Mumbai as well as Belapur, Panvel and Osmanabad in Navi Mumbai.

Based on confidential information, a total of 03 accused were arrested during the investigation, who were identified as Nikhil Kamal Kumar Jaswani, age 28, Papriya, Hoshangabad district, Madhya Pradesh, Rahul Shyamalal Parwani, age 32, Madhya Pradesh, Jay Biharilal Tirthani, age 26, Katni, Madhya Pradesh. Apart from this, a total of 05 wanted accused have been found in the investigation so far and Their search is on. Among them, 03 women have been issued notices under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Naya Samhita.

Their names are Jyoti Patil Jaya Donge Nisha Donge, residents of Lallubhai Compound, Mankhurd. During the investigation, 42 bank passbooks, 70 debit cards, 36 SIM cards, 23 mobile phones, 03 laptops, 09 tabs, 12 bank kits, 01 motor car have been seized from the arrested accused so far. A total of approximately ₹40 lakh worth of property has been seized. Technical analysis of the information contained in the seized digital devices is being done, which is likely to reveal more individuals and transactions related to this network. 28 cyber crimes/complaints revealed from 17 bank accounts out of the total 990 bank accounts seized during the investigation. So far, information of 17 bank accounts out of the 990 bank accounts seized has been obtained from the respective banks.

After investigating the financial transactions in these accounts, available technical information and cyber crimes/complaints registered in various states, it was found that 28 cyber crime suspects registered in various states across the country are associated with these accounts. Investigation of the remaining accounts is likely to reveal more crimes, suspicious financial transactions and networks of related individuals.

The following cyber crimes are also registered against them in several states including
1) Maharashtra-02, including Nairopolis Police Station, Thane District-01, Khadeshwar Police Station, Thane, Navi Mumbai-09
2) Karnataka-09
3) Telangana-06
4) Delhi-02
5) Madhya Pradesh-02
6) Uttar Pradesh-05
7) Kerala-02
8) Tamil Nadu-02
9) Gujarat-02
10) Jammu and Kashmir-01
11) West Bengal-03 Due to this, the investigation of this crime registered in Dongri Police Station has not been limited to Mumbai only but has reached various states of the country.
Financial transactions worth Rs 254.9 crore


According to initial information, financial transactions worth about Rs 254.9 crore have taken place in the 17 bank accounts concerned in a period of one and a half to two months. An in-depth financial investigation is underway to ascertain the source of the money, direction of the transaction, beneficiary accounts, related persons and its link to cybercrimes. Effective action by Dongri Cyber ​​Team against cyber criminals With an effective combination of intelligence gathering, technical investigation, tracing of bank transactions, analysis of digital evidence and direct action, Dongri Cyber ​​Team has taken effective action against an international network misusing mobile bank accounts for cyber fraud. This action has helped significantly in tracing the chain of financial transactions in cyber fraud and exposing the interrelationship of related crimes in different parts of the country.


Important appeal to citizens; Citizens should not give their bank account, passbook, debit card, cheque book, SIM card, mobile phone, OTP, PIN or internet banking information to others for use by anyone. If you notice suspicious transactions in your bank account, immediately contact the concerned bank and inform the police. This information was given by Mumbai DCP Manish Kalwane at a press conference held in Dongri today. This operation was carried out by ACP Tanveer Sheikh and Dongri Senior Police Inspector under the guidance of Mumbai Police Commissioner Devin Bharti.

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Crime

Mumbai: Bank manager arrested for defrauding NRI elderly citizen by stealing gold from bank locker in Kandivali area

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The police have claimed to have arrested a bank manager who stole gold from a NRI bank in Mumbai’s Kandivali area. According to details, on August 12, 2026, Pradeep Motiram Bhatia, age 74 years, profession retired, address: Flat No. 512, Oha Metha Road, Dubai. 602 Jyoti Park, Ambawadi, Kandivali (West), Mumbai in India filed a complaint at Kandivali Police Station. The details of the complaint are that the complainant has been residing in Dubai with his family for the last 52 years.


On 22nd March 2024 at 3:00 PM, the complainant had deposited various gold ornaments weighing 610 grams and worth ₹81,80,000/- in a locker at IndusInd Bank, MG Road, Kandivali (West), Mumbai, for safekeeping and returned to Dubai. After about 2 years, Bhatia came to the bank to collect his ornaments. At that time, he found that all the ornaments had been removed from his locker. In this regard, a case was registered at Kandivali Police Station under Section 316(5) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) No. 1095/2026.


Since the offence had been committed for about 2 years, there were difficulties in obtaining CCTV footage and other technical investigation. Information was taken about the bank staff at that time and the procedure for allotment of lockers. The bank account details of the then Assistant Branch Manager of IndusInd Bank, Kuldeep Ramchand Sahani, aged 35, Room No. 1389, Santosh Nagar, Shri Krishna Nagar, Goregaon East, near Gurukul School, Mumbai, were obtained. In this, financial transactions worth Rs. 9 crore were found in his bank account in about 2 years. These included large-scale transactions with gold-broking companies.


After checking all his transactions, he obtained photographs of the gold ornaments mortgaged from the mortgage companies and got the complainant to confirm. When it was proved that these ornaments belonged to him, the accused was immediately arrested and the fraud committed against the complainant was exposed by confiscating 610 grams of gold weighing 610 grams and worth ₹81,80,000/- from the complainant’s belongings within 4 days. This was informed by DCP Sandeep Goge in a press conference today.

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Crime

Kolkata building fire: Leaseholder of one of nine hotels arrested, two detained

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Kolkata: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Kolkata Police probing the fire incident at a multi-storey building on Mirza Ghalib Street in Central Kolkata, which claimed nine lives, has arrested one person, said officials on Thursday.

Each floor of the said building had separate hotels or guesthouses, and the source of the fire was one such hotel, “Shikha Inn”. The person arrested by the city police this morning has been identified as Abu Zafar, who had taken the hotel on lease from the original owner, Bireshwar Mitra.

Zafar was arrested from his residence in Jorasanko, North Kolkata. He will be presented at a city court later in the day, and the public prosecutor will seek his police custody.

Mitra, the original owner of the hotel, is still absconding. Besides arresting Zafra, the members of the SIT have detained two other persons, reportedly staff of the hotel, for questioning. However, the city police are yet to disclose their identities.

The State Fire Services Department has issued show-cause notices to nine other hotels and four restaurants on Mirza Ghalib Street for non-compliance with safety regulations. They have been asked to respond within the next 24 hours.

The five-storey building on Mirza Ghalib Street housed multiple hotels and guesthouses, with each having shacks. Hotel ‘Shikha Inn’ was on the third floor of the same building, covering an area of ​​1,100 square feet.

There had been numerous allegations of irregularities at this hotel. The hotel caught fire late Tuesday night. Nine people lost their lives in the fire.

The West Bengal government has announced a detailed special audit of all hotels, lodges and guesthouses in the Mirza Ghalib Street area following the incident.

The New Market Police Station, under whose jurisdiction the building falls, has registered a suo motu case. The State Fire Services Department has also lodged a separate complaint.

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