Sex racket busted in Palghar; 3 women rescued, hotel manager held

Police in Maharashtras Palghar district have rescued three women who were allegedly forced into prostitution at a hotel officials said on Sunday The hotelrsquos 39yearold manager a native of Patiala in Punjab has been arrestedAccording to the news agency PTI acting on a tipoff teams from the Local Crime Branch and the Immoral Human Trafficking Prevention Cell conducted a raid at the hotel in the Boisar area on September 18According to a police official from Boisar Police Station investigations revealed that the manager had been luring women into prostitution and was using the proceeds from their exploitation to fund his livelihoodAn FIR has been registered and further investigation is underwayThe manager was arrested and booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act he saidAs per the news agency PTI the rescued women have been shifted to a rehabilitation and care centre the police addedMaharashtra Taloja man kills friendrsquos daughter over personal financial disputeA gruesome murder in Taloja has left residents shocked after a 45yearold man allegedly killed the 17yearold daughter of his friend The accused who has been arrested reportedly acted out of longstanding economic and personal disputes with the girlrsquos family the police saidAccording to Navi Mumbai Police the accused and the girlrsquos father were once close friends ldquoThe motive is linked to economic and personal problems It was not a sudden act but the fallout of a strained relationship between the two familiesrdquo an officer saidLocals however claim that years ago the accused had promised his sonrsquos hand in marriage to his friendrsquos daughter But when the girl turned 17 her father allegedly backed out objecting to the boy being unemployed and a drunkard This is said to have humiliated the accused While police are downplaying this angle sources insist it was a major trigger behind the crimeMumbai Malad man held for extorting 75yearold woman at knifepointThe Malad Police have registered a case against a 60yearold man for allegedly threatening a 75yearold woman at knifepoint and extorting Rs 5 lakh from herAccording to police sources the complainant a housewife residing in Sundarnagar Malad reported that the accused Balkrishna Joshi 60 visited her home and confronted her over alleged defamation in their senior citizen WhatsApp group holding a knife to her neck and demanding Rs 5 lakhOut of fear the victim handed over her gold chain bangles and rings which the accused fled withldquoInitially the complainant refrained from filing a case hoping the jewellery would be returned but she approached the police when no restitution was maderdquo said an officerThe woman who lives alone is associated with a senior citizensrsquo group The group often organises singing activities and other programmes for senior citizens The complainant came into contact with the accused who was also part of the same group and used to participate in these activities The officer said that something transpired between them which made the accused feel humiliatedThe Malad police have booked the accused under relevant charges of extortion and criminal intimidation and police are actively searching for the accused the officer saidWith PTI inputs