Kolkata, July 30: After almost 24 hours of marathon raids and search operations coupled with interrogation, the Birbhum District Police in West Bengal on Thursday arrested Minar Mondal, a relative of Tulu Mondal, an influential stone-quarry owner in the district.

Following the marathon operations that started on Wednesday afternoon, the police recovered huge unaccounted cash and gold from Minar’s residence. The cops brought currency-counting machines from a local bank branch to count the cash seized.

The counting and recounting of the cash recovered was completed on Thursday morning; the total cash seizure had been found to be a little over Rs 28 crore, said a member of the investigating team.

Apart from that, he added, 15 kilograms of gold, whose estimated market value is over Rs 21 crore, have been seized from Minar’s residence.

“The estimated value of the seized cash and gold would be to the tune of around Rs 50 crore,” he added.

On Thursday morning, Minar was formally arrested, and the cops first took him to a local police station. At the same time, the police left his residence with a couple of trunks filled with seized cash and gold.

Minar will be presented to a district court in Suri later in the day, and the public prosecutor will seek his police custody.

Initially, Minar refused to answer repeated queries from the cops about the sources of such huge cash and gold. However, he finally admitted that the money and gold recovered were sourced from a syndicated crime racket, confirmed Birbhum’s district police Superintendent, Bidit Raj Bundesh.

According to police sources, last Tuesday, officials of Mohammad Bazar police station in Birbhum arrested seven dacoits. Based on the information from that dacoits’ group, the investigators found the location of the money and gold ‘mine’ in the house of Minar. Accordingly, the raids and search operations started at Minar’s residence on Wednesday afternoon, which continued till Thursday morning.

It is learnt that Minar was a bus driver in the state-run transport corporation. However, locals said he was involved in a major way with the stone-quarry business of Tulu Mondal, who again was a close confidant of Anubrata Mondal, the former Trinamool Congress district president in Birbhum.

The recovery of such a huge amount of cash and gold from his residence this morning has left his neighbours dumbstruck. In the past, the stone-quarry owner, Tulu Mondal, was accused of illegal stone mining.

Tulu Mondal’s name had also come up in the cattle smuggling case. He was under the watch of the ED in 2022. At that time, the Central investigators raided his house and office. The investigators are trying to find whether the huge cash and gold recovered from Minar Mondal’s residence were actually owned by Tulu Mondal.

Kolkata, July 30: A civic volunteer has been arrested for allegedly raping a female colleague multiple times by blackmailing her, said the police on Thursday. The incident took place at Habra police station area in North 24 Parganas district.

According to the police, the arrested civic volunteer and the victim civic volunteer, both work at Habra police station.

The accused has been arrested on specific charges. He was produced before the Barasat court on Wednesday and the court remanded him in police custody for five days.

According to the victim, a male colleague secretly took her photos while she was changing her clothes to get into her uniform. Later, he started blackmailing her by showing her the photographs and forced her to have physical intimacy with him.

According to the victim, the civic volunteer sexually assaulted the female colleague multiple times by threatening to share the photograph with others. Not only that, he also warned her that if she told anyone about it, there would be grave consequences for her.

Finally, the woman gathered courage and filed a written complaint with the Habra police station. After a preliminary investigation, the police arrested the accused.

According to district police officers, there are several serious allegations against the civic volunteer, including rape, intimidation, and threats.

Accordingly, a case has been registered. The civic volunteer was removed from duty soon after the complaint was filed.

Barasat Police District Superintendent, J. Mercy said, “He was removed from duty after receiving the complaint. A case has been registered.”

It may be noted that in March this year, a civic volunteer was arrested for allegedly molesting a teenage girl who later died by suicide after she was unable bear the trauma of the incident. The incident took place in Amta of Howrah district.

In August 2024, the body of a female doctor was recovered at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The next day of the rape and murder of the doctor, civic volunteer Sanjay Roy was arrested by the Kolkata Police.

Pune, July 29: Pune Police have exposed an alleged illegal network that was endangering the lives of young people in the name of fitness and bodybuilding. Acting on specific information, police arrested five individuals and seized 50 vials of Mephentermine Sulphate Injection IP (MEPHIVAN), allegedly being used for bodybuilding and intoxication purposes.

According to police, the operation was conducted at around 11:20 p.m. on July 24 on a public road near Anand Darbar on Katraj-Dattanagar Road. During the investigation, it was found that the accused were allegedly selling the injections illegally without possessing a valid drug licence or the required medical and pharmaceutical qualifications.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Atharva Indrajit Shinde (24), Avinash Shiva Balungi (22), Pradeep Jitendra Humbre (26), Piyush Ganesh Bharam (26), and Laxman Parmeshwar Mane (36).

Police officials stated that Mephentermine Sulphate Injection is a prescription medicine that should only be administered under the advice and supervision of a qualified medical practitioner. The use of such injections without proper medical consultation can result in serious health complications. Investigators alleged that the accused were preparing to sell the injections illegally to individuals seeking enhanced physical performance, muscle growth, or intoxication.

A case has been registered against the accused under the relevant provisions of the law. Authorities are now investigating the source of the injections, the possibility of a larger supply chain operating behind the racket, and the identities of the intended buyers.

Police officials said strict action would continue against individuals involved in the illegal sale and distribution of restricted or controlled drugs, particularly those exploiting the growing fitness and bodybuilding culture among the youth.

In bodybuilding, injections typically refer to the use of performance-enhancing substances, like anabolic steroids, human growth hormone (HGH), peptides, or site-enhancement oils to speed up muscle growth or change body shape. These methods carry severe medical risks and are often illegal or banned in competitive sports.

Some athletes, bodybuilders and others misuse these drugs in an attempt to enhance performance and/or improve their physical appearance.

Misuse of anabolic steroids can cause a variety of side effects ranging from mild to harmful or even life-threatening. Most side effects are reversible if you stop taking the drugs, but others may be permanent.

Nonprescription doses are often 10 to 100 times higher than the doses healthcare providers prescribe to treat medical conditions. This is why the side effects are usually more severe than the side effects of prescribed anabolic steroid use.

Potential complications include high blood pressure, blood clots, heart-related ailments such as heart attacks, stroke, and liver damage. Non-prescription doses are often significantly higher than medically recommended levels, increasing the likelihood of serious and life-threatening health consequences.