Mumbai: A 27-year-old French tourist was allegedly molested in Khar on November 8, prompting swift action from the Khar police, who arrested the accused within 24 hours.

The complainant, who was staying in Bandra West, was walking along a road in Khar West around 9 pm when an unknown man on a two-wheeler stopped near her and molested her. She filed a complaint on Saturday, after which the police registered a case under Section 74 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Given that the victim is a foreign national, the police formed special teams to trace the accused. After examining CCTV footage, conducting technical analysis, and acting on information from an undercover informant, the police arrested Sunil Vaghela, 25, a resident of Dharavi. The two-wheeler used in the crime has also been seized.

New Delhi, Nov 17: In a key development, Indian public sector oil companies have finalised a deal for imports of around 2.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) LPG for the contract year 2026, to be sourced from the US Gulf Coast, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Monday.

In a post on X social media platform, he said that in a historic first, “one of the largest and the world’s fastest growing LPG market opens up to the United States”.

“In our endeavour to provide secure affordable supplies of LPG to the people of India, we have been diversifying our LPG sourcing,” the minister said.

“In a significant development, Indian PSU oil companies have successfully concluded a 1-year-deal for imports of around 2.2 MTPA LPG, close to 10 per cent of our annual imports – for the contract year 2026, to be sourced from the US Gulf Coast – the first structured contract of US LPG for the Indian market,” Puri informed.

This purchase is based on using Mount Belvieu as the benchmark for LPG purchases and “a team of our officials from Indian Oil, BPCL and HPCl had visited the US and engaged in discussions with major US producers over the last few months, which have been concluded now”.

Under the leadership of PM Modi, PSU oil companies have been providing LPG at the lowest global prices to all our mothers and sisters.

“Even as global prices soared by over 60 per cent last year, PM Modi ensured that our Ujjwala consumers continued to receive LPG cylinder at just Rs 500-550 whereas the actual cost of the cylinder was over Rs 1,100,” said the minister,

The Government of India incurred the cost of over Rs 40,000 crore last year “in order to ensure our mothers and sisters did not feel the burden of rising international LPG prices”, he mentioned.

Bengaluru, Nov 17: A shocking incident of a 57-year-old woman techie losing Rs 31.83 crore to cyber crooks after being trapped in a digital arrest for more than six months has been reported from Bengaluru.

The police have launched a hunt to bust the gang following a complaint lodged at the East Cyber Crime Police Station in Bengaluru, officials said on Monday.

The victim transferred Rs 31.83 crore in 187 transactions. She exhausted all her savings and deposits except for her fixed deposits. The accused had assured her that she would get her money back by February after verification, but kept postponing the date on one pretext or another. Police sources claim that this is one of the biggest digital arrest cases reported in Karnataka.

Growing suspicious, the victim lodged a complaint with the cybercrime police on November 14. She stated that due to her son’s marriage ceremony and other reasons, she had delayed filing the complaint.

According to the police, the cybercriminals kept the victim under digital arrest for more than six months and severed contact after extorting a huge amount.

Her ordeal began on September 15, 2024, when she received a call from a person claiming to be from a reputed courier company, who said that a package in her name — containing three credit cards, four passports, and banned MDMA — had been received at a courier centre in Andheri, Mumbai.

The victim told the caller that she lives in Bengaluru and knows nothing about the package. He then told her that since the package was linked to her mobile number, it could be a case of cyber fraud, and she needed to lodge a complaint. Before she could react, he connected her call to another person who claimed to be an officer from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The accused ensured that she did not contact the police helpline or seek legal assistance by convincing her that she was being monitored by cybercriminals. Later, they issued direct threats, saying that if she shared the information, they would implicate her entire family in the case.

As her son’s wedding was approaching, she succumbed to the pressure and acted as per their instructions. The accused later contacted her through Skype video, identifying himself as one Pradeep Singh. He informed her that for a week, another associate named Rahul Yadav would monitor her. She was restrained at home during this period. The accused opted for work-from-home and stayed in her residence.

On September 23, 2024, the accused asked the victim to declare her properties to the Reserve Bank of India’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). After she declared her assets and cash, the accused extorted money from her in stages. They even issued her a fake clearance certificate.

Further investigation is underway.