Police bust prostitution racket in city, rescue five women

Police raid a hotel on Beed Bypass road

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A major prostitution racket operating in the city was busted by the Satara police on Beed Bypass road on Thursday, leading to the arrest of the main agent and the rescue of five women who were being forced into prostitution.

As per information, acting on a tip-off, a team of police officers led by PSI Ashok Giri laid a trap for the racket's main agent, Pushpa Kantilal Shinde (40, Mukundwadi). Using a decoy customer, the police contacted Shinde and arranged to meet her at Hotel Modi on Beed Bypass road.

Upon arrival at the hotel, the decoy customer was directed to a room where one of the women was waiting. As the police team outside closed in, they simultaneously raided other rooms in the hotel and found four more women who were being held captive on the second floor of the hotel.

During interrogation, Shinde confessed to running the prostitution racket and admitted to sending photos of the women to potential customers on WhatsApp. The rescued women, who hailed from various districts in Maharashtra, including Shikrapur and Nashik, were freed. A case was registered in the Satara police station against Shinde.