Crime
Interpol issues 3 Red Corner notices against Mehul Choksi’s suspected kidnappers
The Interpol has issued three red corner notices against persons suspected of kidnapping and torturing fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi in May 2021.
These moves were at the Antigua and Barbuda authorities’ request.
A statement issued by the police force of the island nation said: “Those Red Notices were approved (by a magistrate of the country Conliffe Clarke) and issued (by Interpol).”
The Interpol notices are a setback for Indian law enforcement and intelligence agencies, who accuse Choksi of defrauding the public sector Punjab National Bank to the tune of Rs 13,000 crore and want him for questioning in India.
Choksi denies the charge and insists his companies never defaulted on loans from the bank.
Choksi, who has apparently been a citizen of Antigua and Barbuda since 2017, complained that he was beaten up, blindfolded and forcibly taken on a boat from Antigua to Dominica, another island in the West Indies.
This complaint was prima facie upheld by an interim finding of the Antiguan police as well as by a Dominican court.
The charge made by Choksi was he was lured into a Hungarian woman’s flat in Antigua, following which two UK-based men of Indian descent took him to Dominica and handed him over to Dominican police.
Reportedly, Indian law enforcement officers arrived in Dominica on a leased Qatar Airways executive jet to secretly whisk him away to India; but were dramatically thwarted by a local radio presenter, Loftus Durand, breaking the news of Choksi’s illegal detention.
Meanwhile, the police commissioner of Antigua and Barbuda, Atlee Rodney, has sternly denied any collusion between his force and Choksi as suggested in an article circulated by an Indian news agency and carried by a section of Indian news media last week.
The piece seemingly quoted a blogger Kenneth Rijock (described as “a renowned financial crimes investigator”), who the wire report claimed “said that Choksi has been scheming to illegally extend the court process in Antigua, by paying bribes to government officials, including senior Antigua police official, Adonis Henry”.
“Multiple witnesses report that Choksi and Inspector Henry have been meeting at least three times a day at Al Porto, a Jolly Harbour (an area in Antigua) restaurant reportedly owned by Choksi, wrote Rijock in his financial crime blob.”
“Choksi not only reached out to Henry but also tried to influence Antigua magistrate Conliffe Clarke through illegal payments,” it added.
Reacting to such reporting, Commissioner Rodney stated: “It is most unfortunate that Mr Kenneth Rijock, on his internet blog, made several false statements, concerning the Antigua and Barbuda Police Force in relation to Mr Mehul Choksi without ascertaining the facts.
“The entire blog is false with inadequate or no research of the facts and has a malicious purpose and ought not to have been posted.”
The Antiguan police testified that only two meetings took place between Choksi and Inspector Henry.
“Both engagements occurred around August 2021 and June 2022 during an investigation… at Mr Choksi’s office… in the presence of his attorney.”
A media report in IMI, an internet media outlet, claimed Rijock received a four-year federal prison sentence for duping US tax authorities and that there are several libel cases against him.
As for Choksi attempting to influence Magistrate Clarke to delay court proceedings relating to India’s demand for his extradition, Antigua News Room, a media portal, produced a copy of a letter his attorneys have written to the Registrar of the High Court in Antigua.
The letter pointed out that Rijock’s article, as reported via a news agency, “has the clear and significant potential to undermine the justice system of Antigua and Barbuda”.
Antiguan Prime Minister Gaston Browne’s party was re-elected in a general election on Wednesday.
There was no comment from the government.
Crime
Wildlife Smuggling Racket Busted: Rare Snakes, Reptiles, Caged Orangutan Rescued From Dombivli House
Thane: In a significant operation exposing a wildlife smuggling racket, the Forest Officials rescued rare species of animals from a highrise in Dombivli. The officials raided an apartment in Palava City, Dombivli and found exotic animals including lizard, turtles, rare species snakes and other reptiles stored in the flat. Horrifying enough, the team found a monkey caged in the washroom of the apartment.
It was later confirmed that the rescued animals included Ignuana (lizard), an Orangutan and python. The operation was conducted by the Forest Range Officers from Thane and Kalyan along with a team from Manpada Police Station after a tip.
The officials did not find any accused present in the apartment at the time of the raid. A case under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 has been registered and a search for the accused is underway. Meanwhile, the seized species are handed over to a local NGO on a temporary basis for observation.
The video of the forest officials raid surfaced on the internet shows a boy opening the door of the well-kept apartment. After entering the flat, the officials gradually come across wildlife species stores in small cage, plastic boxes piled up in the passage and shocking enough an Orangutan in washroom at the end of the apartment.
As per the statement issued by the police, the teams raided the 8th floor apartment in B wing of Savarna Building in Palava City, Dombivli. In the action, the exotic animals seized as prima facie identified as python, ignuana (lizard), turtle, snake etc. The seized wildlife species, on temporary basis, are handed over to Birsa Munda- a local NGO. The pachanama, documentation and search for the accused is underway, it added.
Crime
Mumbai: Unidentified Body Of Man Chopped Into 7 Pieces Stuffed In Plastic Boxes Found Near Gorai Beach; Probe On
Mumbai: The dismembered body of a man, estimated to be between 25 and 40 years old, was discovered in several plastic boxes on the side road which goes to Gorai Beach in Mumbai on Sunday.
Upon receiving the information, police arrived at the scene and took the body into custody. It was later sent for a post-mortem examination. The body has not yet been identified, and a case has been registered.
According to police, on Sunday, a male body was found near Picxy Hotel, Babar Pada, Gorai, Borivali West. The body was cut into seven parts and packed in four plastic boxes. The deceased, believed to be between 25 and 40 years old, was wearing dark blue jeans and black shoes. His right hand bore tattoos.
A resident named Santosh Shinde, 55, from Mira Road, informed the Gorai police after learning about the incident. The Gorai police recovered the body from Shefali village in the Babarpada area.
A forensic team is currently investigating the case, and inquiries are ongoing in the vicinity of the incident location. Police have stated that the recovered body remains unidentified. The Gorai police have registered a case, and further investigation is underway.
A special team has been formed to investigate, and information is being gathered from CCTV footage and nearby police stations to assist in identifying the body.
A police officer said that the body was sent to Bhagwati Hospital for a post-mortem. “We can’t conclude anything immediately, as we are still investigating the matter,” the officer said.
Crime
Mumbai Cops and Poll Squads Seize 1.95 kg of Gold Worth Rs 1.43 Crore in Dahisar
Ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, enforcement agencies in Mumbai’s Dahisar have seized 1.95 kg of gold valued at Rs 1.43 crore.
During a routine inspection at Avdhoot Nagar in Dahisar West, the Static Surveillance Team No. 9, led by Yatin Dhondekar and under the guidance of Returning Officer Sheetal Deshmukh of the 153-Dahisar Assembly Constituency, successfully confiscated 1.95 kg of gold valued at Rs 1.43 crore.
The seizure was part of routine surveillance measures designed to prevent the unauthorised movement of precious metals and unaccounted cash.
This significant operation underscores the SST’s commitment to curbing illegal transactions of cash, precious metals, and liquor in the region, aimed at preventing undue influence on voters during the election period.
The Model Code of Conduct was enforced in the state on October 15 ahead of the polls scheduled to be held on November 20.
Voting for the 288-member Maharashtra assembly will be held on November 20 and counting on November 23.
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