Taking advantage of panic over LPG chaos amid the West Asia crisis, in just a month, cyber fraudsters duped over 100 Mahanagar Gas Ltd (MGL) piped gas consumers and applicants of Rs 2.7 crore by deceiving them into installing malicious APK files.

the victims include people aged between 26 and 83, including domestic help, teachers, lawyers, drivers, businessmen, senior citizens and even government employees.

According to the report, victims received messages warning that their gas connection would be ‘stopped tonight’ due to non-payment or failure to update their previous month’s bill. They were then asked to download an app via a link, which enabled remote access to their phones, allowing scammers to steal the crucial bank details. Not just this, in some cases, individuals who had applied for new gas connections also received fake calls followed by malicious app links.

Meanwhile, in April, a man posing as an MGL employee was caught by residents in Mumbai’s Bhandup while allegedly trying to scam a household. The accused, who failed to produce a valid ID, was handed over to the police.

In another case, a 64-year-old Kurla resident was targeted when fraudsters sent him a fake APK file after warning that his gas connection would be blocked. After he downloaded the file, Rs 2.35 lakh was withdrawn from his bank account.

In March, cybercriminals targeted a 52-year-old housekeeping businessman from Ghatkopar West. The fraudsters sent him a WhatsApp notice claiming his gas bill was not updated and warned that his gas connection would be disconnected. After he clicked on a link shared by them, the accused siphoned off Rs 4.84 lakh from his bank account.

Similarly, an assistant manager from Kurla was looted of Rs 2.75 lakh while another resident from Ghatkopar was cheated of Rs 3.6 lakh after a caller identifying himself as Divesh Sharma from MGL sent an APK file for bill updation.

While a 70-year-old Kalachowki resident received a WhatsApp message claiming that his gas bill was pending, along with an APK file named “MGL-Gas-Bill-Update.” After installing the file, his phone was hacked, and Rs 6.90 lakh was stolen from his account.

MGL urged residents to stay alert, warning that scammers often pose as trusted service providers through fake links, APK downloads, and WhatsApp or SMS messages.

The company advised people to protect themselves by staying informed and verifying details before taking any action. It also clarified that MGL will never ask for OTPs, bank details, or passwords through messages or calls.

New York, April 26: “It’s a dangerous profession”, US President Donald Trump said when a reporter asked him about the latest assassination attempt against him.

It indeed is: He has faced three assassination attempts, the latest on Saturday, with one attempt during his presidential campaign injuring him.

Like him, many US presidents have come under violent attacks, and four were killed.

On July 13, 2024, when Trump was campaigning for president’s elections in Pennsylvania, he had a miraculous escape with the bullet only grazing his ear as he tilted his head to look at a chart projected on a giant screen.

It fatally struck a man on the stage behind him, and the gunman who fired at him at the open-air venue from a nearby building was killed by a Secret Service sharpshooter.

There was a furore over the security lapse, and several Secret Service personnel faced action.

Two months later, on September 15, 2024, a man was discovered hidden in the shrubbery with a rifle at the fence around Trump’s golf course in Florida.

A Secret Service agent fired at him, but he fled and was later captured, put on trial and sentenced in February to life in prison.

Like many politicians across the ideological spectrum and judges and other officials, Trump continually gets death threats in a sharply polarised nation.

The Hilton Hotel, where Saturday’s attempt against Trump took place, featured in another presidential assassination attempt: It was against Ronald Reagan, who was shot and wounded in March 1981 outside the hotel.

Reagan suffered a puncture to his lung in the attack by a man who was declared insane and escaped trial.

The man, John Hinckley, claimed he tried to kill Reagan to impress the actress, Jodie Foster, on whom he had a fixation.

John F. Kennedy was a presidential victim to die. He was killed in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963, by an American who had defected to the Soviet Union and returned to the US.

That man, Lee Harvey Oswald, was, in turn, killed by Jack Ruby, who was said to be angry at him, but it gave rise to several conspiracy theories.

Oswald shot Kennedy from a building while the president was riding in an open car.

John Kennedy’s brother, Robert, was killed five years later in California while he was campaigning for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.

Gerald Ford came close to being killed by a member of a cult in September 1975 in California.

But the gun pointed at him from a close range failed, and the woman wielding it spent 34 years in prison for it.

An Indian origin man, Sai Varshith Kandula, who rammed a truck at a barrier to the White House in May 2023, said he planned to kill Joe Biden and take over the country.

He had a Nazi flag in his truck and expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler. He was sentenced to eight years in prison.

President Abraham Lincoln was the first president to be assassinated. He was shot dead on April 18, 1865, inside a Washington theatre.

Lincoln had led the nation in the Civil War, in which he defeated the secessionist states that opposed the abolition of slavery.

Other presidents killed are James Garfield in 1881 and William McKinley in 1901.

Navi Mumbai, April 25: In a massive anti-narcotics crackdown, Navi Mumbai Police have seized drugs worth Rs 136.03 crore over the past four years, registering 1,993 cases and arresting 2,396 accused under the NDPS Act.

The action, led by Police Commissioner Milind Bharambe under the “Nasha Mukt Navi Mumbai” campaign, also resulted in the deportation of 1,571 foreign nationals, with 911 blacklisted for illegal stay and alleged involvement in drug-related activities.

Police said the crackdown involved a series of coordinated operations, including Operation Garuda, Operation African Kitchen and Operation Prahar, targeting both local peddlers and larger trafficking networks.

In one of the biggest drives in 2024, 75 officers and 300 personnel raided 25 locations simultaneously, detaining 89 suspects and seizing large quantities of cocaine, mephedrone (MD) and tramadol tablets.

Investigations by the Anti-Narcotics Cell, led by Senior Police Inspector Sandeep Nigade, exposed international and inter-state drug syndicates. A major breakthrough came with the busting of a hydroponic ganja racket linked to Thailand, leading to the arrest of key accused Navin and Dhiraj Chinchkar from Malaysia.

The case also led to the dismissal of two Navi Mumbai police constables under service rules and the arrest of 26 individuals, including a Customs officer and two postal employees.

In another operation, police dismantled a Punjab-based heroin trafficking network, seizing drugs worth Rs 5.32 crore. Seven cases were registered, with 56 accused identified. Of these, 44 were arrested from Navi Mumbai, Mumbai, Amritsar, Pune and Chennai, and are currently lodged in Taloja Central Jail.

On the local front, stringent action under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) was taken against a Rabale-based gang led by Shantabai Karandekar, dismantling a key distribution network. Under Operation Prahar, raids were conducted at 48 locations targeting street-level drug suppliers.

Between January 1, 2023, and April 14, 2026, police deported 1,571 foreign nationals, while notices were issued to 84 individuals for overstaying their visas, as part of efforts to curb illegal activities linked to narcotics.

Police Commissioner Milind Bharambe said, “Making Navi Mumbai completely drug-free is our top priority. We are targeting not just local peddlers but also international and inter-state supply chains. Our zero-tolerance policy will continue, and strict action will be taken against anyone involved in the drug trade.”

Year-wise action under NDPS Act

2023: 290 cases, 353 arrests, drugs worth Rs 21 crore seized

2024: 484 cases, 609 arrests, drugs worth Rs 30 crore seized

2025: 990 cases, 1,156 arrests, drugs worth Rs 67.48 crore seized

Till March 2026: 229 cases, 278 arrests, drugs worth Rs 17.27 crore seized