Crime
Pirate attack: Kin of kidnapped Indian sailor in distress, prays for safe return
Family members of the missing Indian sailor Pankaj Kumar believed to be kidnapped by sea pirates from the ship MV Tampen anchored in West African nation Gabon are distressed.
Pankaj Kumar, aged 30, hailing from the Gurdaspur district in Punjab was the Second Engineer of MV Tampen.
“Only last year he got married. We are all distressed a lot. There is no information about his whereabouts in Gabon. The shipping company officials are saying that my brother is missing and beyond that there is no information,” Sandeep Kumar, the younger brother of sailor Pankaj Kumar, told IANS over phone.
According to Sandeep Kumar, the family consists of younger sister, their parents and wife of Pankaj Kumar.
“We have sent an email to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We are yet to hear anything from his office,” Sandeep Kumar added.
He said requests have been made to the shipping company the Mumbai based Proactive Shipping Management to do the needful to trace his elder brother.
According to him, aerial search operations were carried out by Gabon authorities on Monday and after that it was stopped.
The ship, with 17 Indian crew, was sailing from Cameroon to the UAE when it developed some propulsion problems and was anchored just two kilometres away from Gabon’s Owendo anchorage when pirates boarded the ship on Sunday morning.
While the pirates threw Pankaj Kumar overboard, they also shot and injured Cook Sunil Ghosh and Chief Officer Naurial Vikas who were later admitted to a local hospital.
“Ghosh (from West Bengal) is doing fine in the hospital. Family members-wife and others- had spoken to him. There is no information about his discharge from the hospital,” a relative told IANS.
“All the sailors on the ship are distressed and would want to come back home,” Nithin Suresh Kuttipravan, a friend of one of the sailors Deepak Udayaraj told IANS.
Kuttipravan is reaching out to various official agencies so that the Indian sailors are brought back at the earliest.
“An official of the Indian Embassy in Congo is trying to reach out to the sailors. The ship captain is under a lot of stress and is answering the officials from the Gabon government,” Kuttipravan said.
He said as per the information from the sailors on board of MV Tampen, the ship’s satellite phone was not working for the past one month.
“They were communicating using email. Now they are using Whatsapp using their Indian SIM cards. We have requested the Indian Embassy to provide the sailors local SIM cards so that they can stay in touch with their family members,” Kuttipravan added.
The Honorary Consulate of India in Gabon is John Rupchandani.
According to Kuttipravan, all the sailors are ready to sign off and reach India at the earliest.
“It seems the shipping company wants the sailors to sail to Dubai after setting right the ship,” he said.
“As per my information, the pirates wanted to kidnap about three/four sailors. While resisting the kidnap attempt, the pirates had shot two Indian sailors,” Kuttipravan said.
According to him, the ship was sailing at a speed of four knots powered by one propulsion and the ship dropped anchor just two kilometres away from Gabon’s Owendo anchorage.
The ship is owned by Prince Marine Transport Service Pvt Ltd, Mumbai and the sailors were provided by Proactive Ship Management.
The ship sailing from Cameroon to the UAE has been facing technical problems enroute. Both its propulsion systems had stopped several times.
The vessel was diverted to Owendo for repairs as it was the nearest port.
On Sunday, six pirates attacked the ship and kidnapped Pankaj Kumar and shot two sailors.
“The marine and local police in Gabon are questioning three persons who had boarded the ship two days before the attack. We hope to know some information about the attackers and the missing crew today (Wednesday),” Captain Sunil Kumar, Security Officer of Proactive Ship Management, told IANS on Wednesday.
“One garbage cleaner and two technicians had boarded the ship as per the information conveyed to us by our agent there,” he had said.
Officials of Prince Marine Transport and Proactive Ship Management were not available for an update when contacted by Mumbaipress.
Crime
Mira-Bhayandar: Police Busts Illicit Liquor Brewing Den In Nallasopara
Mira Bhayandar: Further tightening their screws against illicit liquor mafia ahead of the assembly elections scheduled to be held on 20, November, the Mira Road-based central crime branch unit attached to the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai (MBVV) police busted yet another massive illicit liquor brewing unit which was operating from a hillock in a dense jungle area in Nallasopara on Thursday.
Acting on a tip-off, a team led by assistant police inspector- Dattatray Sarak marched 2-kilometre-deep inside the jungle area located in the Dhaniv Baug area of Nallasopara (east) at around 8 am.
The team seized multiple barrels of hooch along with ingredients including 2,800 litres of fermented jaggery wash, 140 litres of liquor, chemicals and other manufacturing equipment collectively worth more than Rs. 1.42 lakh.
However, the den operator identified as- Prabhakar Bhoye and his employees managed to evade the police dragnet. The entire material and equipment were destroyed on the spot.
An offence under the relevant sections of the Maharashtra Prohibition Act-1949 for construction/works of any distillery or brewery and manufacturing intoxicants has been registered in this context at the Pelhar police station.
The consumption of illicit liquor which is unscientifically manufactured by using toxic chemicals like methanol and rectified spirit can cause deaths and other serious ailments including loss of eyesight. Further investigations were underway.
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.
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