23 March,2024 01:43 PM IST | Mumbai | Apoorva Agashe
Gangster Prasad Pujari. Pic/police sources
Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court in Mumbai sent gangster Prasad Pujari to 14-day custody of Mumbai Crime Branch. Pujari, who had been evading arrest for the last two decades, was extradited from China. He arrived in the city in the wee hours of Saturday.
Prasad Pujari, a notorious gangster, is wanted in multiple cases of murder and extortion in Mumbai. The officials from the Mumbai Crime Branch had previously told that Pujari was scheduled to arrive at Mumbai International Airport on Friday evening.
Pujari had been implicated in numerous criminal activities, with the latest case registered against him in 2020. Despite efforts by the city crime branch to dismantle his gang and the issuance of a red corner notice against him, Pujari had managed to evade arrest for years.
According to reports, Pujari wed a Chinese woman in an attempt to postpone his deportation. But after years of work by the Mumbai Crime Branch, he was apprehended, and he is now scheduled to return to Mumbai to face justice.
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In 2020, Pujari's mother was arrested by the Mumbai Crime Branch after which they learnt that Prasad Pujari's visa had expired. This development sparked optimism that he would eventually go back to India.
Prasad Pujari gained notoriety for his involvement in various criminal activities, including the firing incident targeting Shiv Sena worker Chandrakant Jadhav in Vikhroli, Mumbai, on December 19, 2019. Fortunately, Jadhav escaped unharmed as the bullet narrowly missed him.
According to Mumbai police, Pujari had been granted temporary residence in China in March 2008, which expired in March 2012. Initially arriving in China on a visit visa, which expired in May 2008, Pujari resided in the Luohu district of Shenzhen City, Guangdong province.
Mumbai Crime Branch's AEC had arrested another man in 2019 who was allegedly in contact with Pujari. The accused, Mitesh Shah had allegedly introduced the Kalbadevi-based businessman to the gangster who sought his help to settle his financial dispute with a friend.
Reportedly, the man's friend told the police and filed a complaint after he received threatening calls from Pujari. Shah, a south Mumbai resident, was later remanded to police custody.
