Mumbai Police’s Anti-Extortion Cell has once again taken notorious gangster Ravi Pujari into custody in connection with a 2014 extortion case involving a demand of ₹2 crore registered in the Santacruz area. On Thursday, Pujari was produced before the Esplanade Court, which remanded him to police custody till January 31.
According to police sources, the complainant is a marble trader associated with Regal Marbles, located in Santacruz West. Between August 31 and September 17, 2014, the businessman allegedly received multiple calls from foreign numbers. The caller identified himself as Ravi Pujari and demanded an extortion amount of ₹2 crore. It is alleged that the accused threatened to open fire at the shop and kill the complainant if the money was not paid.
During the hearing, the prosecution told the court that custodial interrogation of Pujari is crucial in the case. Police stated that questioning him in custody would help uncover details related to the foreign phone numbers used, the conspiracy behind the extortion calls, and Pujari’s links with the accused already arrested in the matter.
Earlier, four accused — Ejaz Hanif Shaikh, Ashraf Shakeel Saiyed, Sameer Zuber Saiyed and Pawan alias Rahul alias Rajesh Yamandas Sahani — have been arrested in the case. Police allege that they had arranged weapons and conspired to carry out the attack as part of the extortion plot.