‘Tall story’ fails to save Nigerian drug peddler

PANKAJ SARMA

Guwahati, July 31: A Nigerian drug peddler, who was arrested by customs officials on charges of heroin trafficking, had “cooked up” a story of torture in the court to escape punishment.

However, the court presumed that the accused had conjured up the story out of fear of being convicted.

Orji Ramsey William, 32, who was sentenced to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment yesterday, had apparently woven a story of torture by customs sleuths who, he also alleged, had forcibly obtained his signatures on blank papers, as a last attempt to escape punishment.

William, who claimed to be a footballer, was arrested by customs officers from the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport here on September 12, 2009 moments before he was to board a Kingfisher Airlines flight to Delhi.

The accused was arrested for allegedly booking a parcel containing 609.400 gm heroin to Atlanta in the US through a private courier company here. He was booked under Section 21 (C) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

William was arrested from the airport after the heroin, worth more than Rs 60 lakh, concealed in buttons of ladies garments, was seized from the office of Speed Express (courier service) on G.S. Road in the Ulubari area of the city.

During checking, the consignment note, which was issued to William by of Speed Express against the booking, was also recovered from his possession.

While booking the parcel, William had submitted a photocopy of the passport issued by the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the name of Dike Kenneth Chibuike, claiming it was his. The accused had booked his air ticket from Guwahati to Delhi in the name of Dike Kenneth Chibuike.

During trial, when evidences went against him, William told the court that he did not know anything about the narcotic drug. He claimed that the customs officials had beaten him and taken his signature on blank papers and compelled him to write statements dictated by them.

However, the court observed that the defence lawyer had failed to establish his claim by cross-examining prosecution witnesses or by adducing defence evidence.

“On perusal of the record, it appears that the accused did not say anything as regard torture and beating and obtaining signature forcibly on blank paper, while he was produced before the court,” additional district and sessions judge Md I. Hussain said in the order, that was passed yesterday and the certified copy of which was made available today.

“The order, dated September 14, 2009, goes to show that nothing has been recorded as regard torture of the accused. Not informing the court about torture and obtaining signature forcibly by the accused at the time of his production give rise to the presumption that it is a cooked up story of after thought which cannot give benefit to the accused,” the court observed.

READ MORE - ‘Tall story’ fails to save Nigerian drug peddler

Many drugs on offer in Hyderabad

For high-spirited youngsters, Hyderabad offers many varieties to choose from
Sudipta Sengupta & Mahesh Budd

Cocaine could be making headlines, but it's definitely not the only drug giving the `high-spirited' Hyderabadi junta a high.

HYDERABAD: Cocaine could be making headlines, but it's definitely not the only drug giving the `high-spirited' Hyderabadi junta a high. Their addiction list includes a range of other `stuff' that starts from the cheap and easily available weed (ganja) to the more potent and expensive ecstasy and LSD.

There is also hashish (made from cannabis), charas (another version of hashish) and heroin (derived from opium) that have a huge clientele in the city. Besides our Tollywood stars, a significantly large number of young professionals and college students too are hooked on to these substances.

And this, despite the rising cost of these addictives. Apart from some `diluted' versions of marijuana (ganja), that are found for a nominal Rs 100 or so (per gram), the rest of the stuff come at astronomical prices. Here's a quick look at the rate card. Hashish: Rs 1,500-Rs 2,500 (per tola), ecstasy (pill): Rs 1,600- Rs 2,500 per piece, LSD: Rs 2,000 or more (per drop). "Even good quality weed comes for nothing less than Rs 500 a sachet," said a reveller from the city adding how it has increasingly become a fad to smoke among young pub-goers. "Especially boys are looked down upon if they don't smoke. There is a huge peer pressure behind the rising rate of drug addicts," the reveller said.

Predictably, this tremendous surge in the number of addicts is leading to a rapid expansion of the drug market in Hyderabad. Found only in select pockets until a few years ago, they are now sold in places across the city. Topping the charts in this trade are areas such as Dhoolpet, Begum Bazar and Sitaphalmandi among other small `dope joints'. "These markets are well-known hubs for marijuana (ganja). The dealers here also sell other drugs, but that is done very discreetly," said an observer noting how in earlier days ganja trading was more blatant in Hyderabad. "In every nook and corner of the city one could find these peddlers. It is only after the hard drugs started to flood the market and drew the police's attention, did they go underground," the source said. But while the dealings are now kept under wraps, these drugs are available in abundance across Hyderabad, insiders claim adding how the police seem to be little bothered about this.

In fact, even official records show how the men in khaki in the last two years have largely busted cocaine gangs and seized very small quantities of ganja, charas and brown sugar. No action has been taken to curb the use of major drugs like LSD and ecstasy. In 2009 for instance, the city police booked 24 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance (NDPS) Act, arrested 43 persons and seized 264.5 kilos of ganja and 28 grams of brown sugar. In 2010, the number of cases under the same Act jumped to 51 and 98 persons was arrested in these cases. A total of 556 grams of cocaine, 440 kg of ganja, 900 grams of ephedrine (a chemical used in drugs) and 400 grams of charas was seized from the accused. "These numbers, though look impressive on the face of it, are very small when compared to the growth of the trade in the city. Every day, several kilos of ganja are brought into the city from neighbouring districts. The police need to do much more to check the menace," said an observer of the drug `industry' of Hyderabad.

Apart from local consumption, ganja from Andhra Pradesh is even exported to other states in south and central India too. "The ganja available here is considered to be of very high quality and is, therefore, smuggled out in huge quantities" said a police official while maintaining silence on the department's role in addressing the issue. In fact, those doing marijuana in Hyderabad say that the men in uniform have even turned a blind eye to the rising number of ganja peddlers roaming the streets of the city. In Dhoolpet for example (the hub of ganja peddlers), several pan shops have ganja stocks that are sold to any interested party that approaches the shop. That this is done without the knowledge of the police is hard to belief, observers say. Many of them are also LSD and ecstasy suppliers who have never been nabbed by the police who only seem to be running behind coke peddlers.

"Cocaine and ganja are dealt with by two different peddler groups. We have information about the synthetic drugs dealers also and hear that these substances are available even at city pubs. We are now cracking down on coke peddlers and will soon focus on the other network too," said a Task Force inspector, in his team's defense.

READ MORE - Many drugs on offer in Hyderabad

'Take Rs 20, rape my daughter'

By: Shiva Devnath
Date: 2011-07-28
Place: Mumbai

Monster father, desperate to leave Mumbai, dumps his 9-year-old daughter with a drug addict, even bribing him with a paltry sum to buy drugs; the latter strangulates her after raping her
When Ghulam Mohammad Hamid Khan (47), decided to abandon Mumbai and board a train for his UP hometown from the Mankhurd railway station, he decided to travel light.
The first baggage that he decided to get rid of was none other than his 9-year-old daughter Roshni. He didn't have to look far- along came Irfan Sheikh (21), a drug addict.

The Mankhurd police arrested Irfan Sheikh (left) and the
father of the victim Ghulam Khan on charges of rape and murder
Not only did the desperate father give the addict permission to have his way with her, he also paid the man to buy himself some drugs.
Mankhurd police Sub-Inspector Popat Salunkhe said, "Hussain was unemployed, and his wife had thrown him out of their house. He wanted to make a fresh start in Jabalpur. He was in the habit of abducting his own children, and using them as leverage to force money out of her."
He added, "On July 17, he took Roshni with him to the Mankhurd railway station. He waited for three hours, expecting his wife to arrive there to retrieve their child. However, Hussain's wife did not turn up. Desperate to leave for his hometown, he started looking for an alternative means to get rid of his daughter."
"He accosted Irfan at the station, and decided to dump Roshni in his custody. He gave Irfan the licence to do anything he wanted with the girl. When Irfan refused to accept the responsibility, Hussain pleaded with him, even bribing him with a sum of Rs 20, asking him to purchase drugs of his choice," informed Salunkhe.
According to the police report, Irfan then took Roshni into a dark alley, where he attempted to rape her. The terrified girl screamed, at which he clamped her mouth shut, causing her to lose consciousness. Once the girl stopped resisting, he raped her and sodomised her in quick succession.
After having his way with her, he strangulated her with a dupatta, and threw her body into an open drain. The Mankhurd police found Roshni's stripped body on July 18, and began their investigations, trying to identify her.
Mother shocked
Roshni's mother identified her daughter at the Rajawadi hospital, divulging that Hussain had taken Roshni away. "Roshni's mother had not lodged a missing complaint, thinking that she was with her father. Roshni's mother's statement made us certain of Hussain's involvement," said Salunkhe.
Mankhurd police then sent two teams to UP and Ajmer, to search for Hussain. "We nabbed Hussain at Jabalpur station in UP, and brought him to Mumbai," said a police officer.
During his interrogation, Hussain confessed that he had handed over his daughter to Irfan, because he wanted to get rid of her and teach his wife a lesson.
He had left Roshni at different stations on previous occasions as well. We nabbed Irfan, also a resident of Mankhurd, who confessed to the crimes of rape and murder. We will now produce both culprits at court," informed Salunkhe.
Other Dastardly Dads

JUNE, 2011
Last month, an 18-year-old Bandra girl went to cops after facing months of abuse at the hands of her father Shabbir Khan, who raped her at knifepoint, while her mother chose to look the other way for the sake of 'family reputation.' ('Brave teen stands up to rapist father,' June 3, 2011)
FEBRUARY, 2011
A man was arrested for allegedly killing his eight-year-old daughter after she resisted his attempt to rape her. ('Father kills 8-year-old daughter after failed rape attempt,' February 25, 2011)
MARCH, 2009
A father in Mira Road, Kishore Chauhan, allegedly raped his two daughters, aged 21 and 17, with the help of a tantrik, Hasmukhbhai Rathod. The duo had been raping the elder daughter for nine years and the younger one for a year before a police complaint was filed. The rapes had been going on with the mother's knowledge and support.

READ MORE - 'Take Rs 20, rape my daughter'

Fake perfume units busted, 4 nabbed

NEW DELHI: The crime branch of Delhi Police raided two units manufacturing fake perfumes and deodorants in the Nizamuddin area of southeast Delhi on Thursday.

Fake perfumes and deodorants, worth over Rs 30 lakh, of almost all leading Indian and imported brands were seized, said cops. Police said the chemicals used to manufacture these fake deodorants and perfumes were extremely harmful and samples have been sent to chemical lab for further investigation.

Cops have arrested four people. The accused have been identified as Asiul Islam (25), Baharul (19), Zahirul Islam (19) and Usman Khan (20). The two unit owners - Hafizul Gazi and Mohammad Shafiq - are on the run.

The raid was carried out around 2pm based on a tip-off. "We have seized 10 machines used for mixing alcohols and perfumes. These also include flammable cylinders where the products are compressed," said additional DCP (crime) Joy Tirkey. "Without any proper licence, the two units - operating from two houses in the Nizamuddin West area - could have witnessed a major accident,'' said Tirkey.

"We found the accused paid the rag pickers extra money to get discarded cans of the leading brands. They then opened the seal, refilled the cans and then re-sealed them. The cans were distributed across the city through smaller traders, each bottle bringing in profits of over Rs 400-5000, depending on the brand,'' said a source.

Earlier, officials of the dock intelligence unit in Chennai had intercepted two containers from which they seized fake branded perfume bottles and deodorants. The customs authorities seized a total of 1.18 lakh pieces of such fake branded perfumes and deodorants, which was valued around Rs.2 crore.

The second container had body sprays and perfumes of different brands and a total of 59,424 pieces were found. The goods manufactured in China were falsely printed as Made in EEC for the perfumes and Made in the U.K for the deodorants.

While Usman is a resident of West Bengal, the others are residents of Assam.

READ MORE - Fake perfume units busted, 4 nabbed

Rejected lover kills teenager in Tripura

Agartala, Jul 27 : A jilted lover, accused of murdering a teenager in hostel of Panjiram Para HS School in South Tripura last night, was arrested today.

According to a report, Amendra Reang (19), a student of Class IX, had entered the girls’ hostel late last night and had assaulted one Basanti Reang (16) with a brick.

Reang died on the spot.

Police arrested Amendra soon after the incident.

Preliminary investigation had revealed that Amendra's proposal was turned down by Basanti a few days ago.

READ MORE - Rejected lover kills teenager in Tripura

High-profile sex racket busted

By: Anurag Jadli
Date: 2011-07-26
Place: Delhi

Six Uzbek women apprehended; one of them is a reputed belly dancer

Delhi Police claimed to have busted a high-profile flesh trade racket in the capital on Monday. As many as six Uzbek women were arrested and one of them is a belly dancer of national repute in her country.After receiving a tip-off from Greater Kailash, Part-II, in south-east Delhi, the police constituted a raiding party and a sent a decoy customer to the area. As soon as the deal was struck, the police team apprehended six women.


International affairs: The Uzbek girls being escorted by female cops to
court at Saket in New Delhi on Monday. Pic/Subhash Barolia

Modus operandi
"During investigation, it was revealed that the Uzbek girls were on tourist visas, and worked for a pimp who was also from Uzbekistan. She had been operating in Delhi and nearby areas for the last three years. Reportedly, she had married an Indian national to get citizenship," said Ashok Chand, DCP, Crime and Railways.

The girls were residents of Greater Kailash-II, Safdarjung Enclave and Arjun Nagar. The first-floor residence in Greater Kailash-II had been taken on a monthly rent for Rs 50,000, while the Safdarjung Enclave and Arjun Nagar residences cost Rs 20,000 per month.

Money matters
According to police, the woman kingpin trafficked girls from Uzbekistan to Delhi on a regular basis. She arranged for their transport, accommodation in the city and clients. She charged Rs 30,000-35,000 for a night. She charged more for weekends and entertained clients only when they came to her with a trusted reference from a former client. "The kingpin is absconding. Her registers in which she wrote all the details of transactions have been seized. Further investigation is in progress," said Chand.

What a racket!
This is the third racket to be busted in the Capital in the last one month. Earlier, Ashish and Nagma Khan, kingpins of two other high-profile flesh trade rackets, and many foreigners were apprehended.

READ MORE - High-profile sex racket busted

Man nabbed for gifting sex toys, lingerie to teen

Mumbai:

For past 2 weeks, 21-yr-old Charkop resident harassed 19-yr-old neighbour by sending her vulgar presents namelessly and calling her father to abuse him
For most of last fortnight, a 19-year-old girl who resides with her parents in Charkop, had been showered with anonymous gift parcels.
But it ceased to be an occasion for thrill right after she unwrapped the first present. For, every time she opened them, she invariably found vulgar items like lingerie and sex toys.

Accused Suraj Sagar
Ending the embarrassment and harassment for her family yesterday, cops disclosed the 21-year-old man who was the secret presenter of the perverted gifts. Apparently, he had been smitten with the girl.
According to the police officers investigating the case, the accused identified as Suraj Sagar, began harassing the girl two weeks ago.
He would call up the girl's father on his cell phone to abuse him and send him offensive text messages. To the girl, he sent the unsigned gift parcels containing obscene items. A resident of Charkop, he knew the girl through a common friend.
Last Saturday, fed up of the nameless stalker, the victim's father approached the Charkop police with the gift items the accused had couriered to the girl's house, and lodged a complaint.
"Sagar used to call up a restaurant near the girl's house and order expensive meals to be delivered to her address. When the parcel reached her house, her father would end up paying bills worth thousands of rupees," said Pramod Toradmal, assistant police inspector from Charkop police station.
After the complaint, cops started with tracing the number from which the calls were made to the complainant. They located it to a SIM belonging to a girl in a college in Malad. "We questioned the girl and learnt that she had lost that phone.
She had even filed a complaint. We then began tracing the boys in her group who were suspected of robbing the phone or slyly removing the SIM card and making the offensive calls," said Toradmal.
Their conjecture was correct. After questioning a 17-year-old boy, the police found that he had helped Sagar acquire the SIM card and make the calls.
The minor, who stayed opposite the victim's house and knew both the girls, used to inform Sagar about the movements of the police and the girl. He was aided by an accomplice, also his age, and was detained thereafter.
"Sagar knew the girl. They stayed in the same locality. He simply wanted to harass her. He never tried to call her as she would have recognised his voice," said Toradmal.
"We have arrested all the three involved in the crime under Section 509 (for word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and Section 504 (for intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) and Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code.
As two of them are minors, they have been sent to the children's remand home. Sagar would be presented in court tomorrow," said Toradmal.
Lingerie Trouble
This is not the first case of a woman receiving unsolicited lingerie. In the past, a lawyer had resorted to presenting the popular gift item to a colleague to express his love. Unfortunately, it landed him in trouble.
MiD DAY had reported ('Gifting lingerie leads to lawyer's arrest', March 23) how Advocate Ambadas Sardar (54) had been arrested from the Nirmal Nagar residence of advocate Suvarna Parle (39) on March 8, when he showed up at her place with a heap of presents that included undergarments.
The gift did not quite gel with the object of his affection who, already fed up with his lewd messages and constant stalking, called the cops.

READ MORE - Man nabbed for gifting sex toys, lingerie to teen

Cops chase down abductors, rescue 24-yr-old pub staffer

NEW DELHI: Heroic action by the Delhi Police and a cab driver foiled what could have been another Dhaula Kuan-type abduction and molestation of a young woman in a moving vehicle, in the wee hours of Sunday.
In an operation code-named 'Mousetrap' that lasted an hour, cops located and chased down a Scorpio in which five drunken youths had abducted an employee of a Gurgaon nightclub, and finally rescued the 24-year-old woman at a jungle road near Aya Nagar in south Delhi, around 4.10am. Two of her assailants were nabbed while three managed to get away.
The youths had been following the woman, who along with three others had hailed a radio taxi around 2.30am from Gurgaon's Sahara Mall to return to their residence in Badarpur. At the Ghitorni Metro Station, the youths in their Scorpio forced the cab to stop and tried to pull out the women. The cab driver, Amit Sharma, resisted the assailants. He was beaten up and even offered Rs 1,000 to let the occupants out of his Alto. The accused then dragged the 24-year-old victim, who was sitting on the front seat, into their SUV and drove off.
"They took all the four mobile phones from the women so they could not make calls," said DCP (South) Chhaya Sharma. The men also tried to force another woman into their Scorpio but failed, she said.
Sharma, the cab driver whose mobile was not taken, called up the cops at 3.12am. The South district police quickly launched a hunt. The nearest police picket, at Aya Nagar, was informed and a team of four personnel on patrol duty - sub-inspectors Kuldeep Sharma and Bansi Lal, and constables Chander Bhan and Raghubir - set off in a Tata 407 tempo to look for the Scorpio.
The target was spotted around 4am near Jaunapur Road and the chase began. Police said the tempo hit the Scorpio several times in an attempt to make it stop but the accused were in no mood to give in. Finally, the police team trapped them at a bottleneck on a jungle road near Aya Nagar and rescued the woman. They managed to catch two of the accused, Kartar Singh and Pramod, while the other three escaped
The two have been booked under various sections including abduction, criminal intimidation, causing hurt, outraging the modesty of a woman and robbery, while five teams have been sent to Faridabad and Ballabhgarh to hunt down the others.
It all began at Pigeon, a nightclub in Gurgaon's Sahara Mall where the youths had gathered to celebrate the new Scorpio bought by Kartar Singh, 22, a Manav Rachna university alumnus who runs a play school, Little Pride, in Faridabad. Apart from Singh and Pramod (22), others have been identified as Ramesh Nagar, Deepak and Arun.
Cops said the five friends a full bottle of Blender's Pride whiskey in Faridabad before coming to Gurgaon in search of more liquor. "They first went to DLF mall in Gurgaon but were not allowed into the two pubs there. Then they came to Sahara mall and went to Pigeon," Chhaya Sharma said.
Around 2.30am, the four girls, two residing in Badarpur, were coming out of the mall. Kartar Singh and his friends followed them. "They were apparently interested in one of the girls. Kartar was very aggressive and had asked her to come and dance with him," said Sharma. The 24 year old girl, who is married, told the men to get lost, said a police officer. The youths also misbehaved with the women at the mall.
Two of the women, including the one who was abducted, work in Pigeon and live together in a rented accommodation in Badarpur, south Delhi. Police said the two other were their cousins and had recently come from Etah and Kannauj (in Uttar Pradesh) to visit them. "The women had brought their cousins to show them the malls and their workplace," said an officer.
The girls hired a radio cab, an Alto car DL1R T 5200, from Gurgaon for Badarpur for Rs 400. The drunk youths chased the cab after removing the temporary number plates of their Scorpio. Around 3am, they intercepted the cab near Ghitorni Metro Station and took the car keys from driver Amit Sharma.

READ MORE - Cops chase down abductors, rescue 24-yr-old pub staffer

Mercedes molestation case: Accused surrenders to cops

GURGAON: The city police claimed that the accused in the Mercedes molestation case, where a girl was allegedly molested and then thrown off a moving car on M G Road in June, has surrendered to them and that he has been sent to judicial custody on Sunday. The police also said they have recovered the Mercedes.

According to the police, Narendra Mahlawat surrendered on Friday at the DLF phase II police station and was produced at a city court on Sunday. The court of judicial magistrate Jasbeer Singh sent Mahlawat to judicial custody. The accused confessed that he had hidden the vehicle at his village house in Gadoli. A team of police officials was sent to Gadoli and recovered the Mercedes.

The police had earlier maintained that the vehicle which was used in the crime did not belong to him and that he "fixed a fake number plate" to hide identity. City police had told the court that the car originally belonged to one Hitesh of Palam Vihar. Narendra had lent some cash to Hitesth and as he failed to return the loan amount, the accused had taken the car from him. Hitesh had committed suicide on April 24 and Narendra had been using the car after changing its number plate. "The accused said that he is the owner of the car and he has a sale letter ofthe car which was given to him by the former owner of the car. But he could not produce the puchase documents during interrogation," said Babu Lal, SHO, DLF-II.

READ MORE - Mercedes molestation case: Accused surrenders to cops

Wife decamps with Rs 8.85K before fleeing with lover

NAGPUR: Eight year after their love marriage, wife left husband and decamped with cash and valuables worth Rs 8.85 lakh before fleeing with her lover.

On the complaint lodged by the husband, Jaripatka police has booked wife, Surendra Kaur (30) and her lover, Audumbar Karande for for criminal breach of trust under section 406 IPC and for abetment under section 109 IPC.

According to the police, being relatives, the complainant, 30-year-old, Harinder (name changed) fell in love with Surendra Kaur. Eight years ago, the couple's parents accepted their relationship and assented their marriage.

The complainant's name has been changed in the report as per his request.

The couple has stayed together for eight years and has not been blessed with any child, said police sources. Sources informed that the complainant has not reported any dispute between them and is still clueless about what went wrong in their relationship.

The complainant, who owns a business, mentioned in his complaint that his wife came in contact with Karande, through social networking sites.

Police said that the wife told Harinder about Karande as his internet friend. Harinder knew about his wife's chatting with Karande and even had arguments with her over the topic.

The incident took place on July 20 while Harinder had gone to his work place while his wife was alone at house. When he returned home, he was shocked to find his wife not at home and the valuables worth Rs 7.35 lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh cash was missing from the almirah.

A shattered Harinder tried to contact his wife but she has switched off her cell phone, said police sources. Harinder enquired for two days and finally filed a complaint against his wife and her lover.

Karande is a native of Manikbagh, Amrut Nagar in Pune. Jaripatka police is on the lookout for him.

READ MORE - Wife decamps with Rs 8.85K before fleeing with lover

Thane PCO owner held for possessing over 80,000 SIM cards

A PCO owner has been arrested on charges of possessing over 80,000 mobile SIM cards in the powerloom town of Bhiwandi here, police said today.

Police also believe that the accused Anwar Sadab Ahmad Ansari alias Bablu, 33, was part of a gang that offered overseas calls at cheaper rates using illegal lines.

The incident came to light when acting on a tip-off, police raided Ansari's shop on Thursday night and found nine gunny bags full of SIM cards of different service providers.

Police suspect the involvement of more persons and are taking the help of various mobile service providers to trace them.

READ MORE - Thane PCO owner held for possessing over 80,000 SIM cards

Prostitution racket busted in Delhi, 6 arrested

New Delhi: A prostitution racket was busted on Monday by the Delhi Police Crime Branch and six Uzbekistan nationals have been arrested.
They were operating from a flat in the posh Greater Kailash-2 locality.
The police are looking for the alleged agent who has been identified.
This is the third such racket involving foreign nationals in the last two weeks.
This came days after a high profile sex racket was busted in New Delhi where women would operate out of flats in Chhattarpur, Malviya Nagar and Kalkaji areas of the city and would charge somewhere between Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh per client, according to the police.

READ MORE - Prostitution racket busted in Delhi, 6 arrested

Driver on the run after raping minor for 8 months

By: Imran Gowhar
Date: 2011-07-22
Place: Bangalore
Cops are searching for autorickshaw driver, who has been exploiting a 15-year-old school girl since November after threatening her with dire consequences if she didn't comply
A traumatic tale of sexual exploitation of a minor school-going girl came to light recently and the Hennur police are currently on the lookout for the accused. Naveen, who is an autorickshaw driver in the Hennur area had been sexually exploiting Mary (15) (name changed) for the past eight months by threatening her with dire consequences if she revealed the details to anyone.

Ordeal: Fearing for her safety and her family, Mary used to oblige
and be sexually exploited for over eight months. Representation pic
The incident came to light when the victim's neighbour noticed the girl moving around with the accused. Upon questioning, she broke down and narrated her ordeal.
Friend or foe?
The neighbour informed the victim's parents, who are construction labourers, and they filed a police complaint. Mary told the police that the accused, who frequented a neighbours house, had befriended her 10-year-old brother and gave him his mobile number, asking that she contact him urgently.
Out of curiosity, Mary called Naveen and was told to meet him near the railway gate in Hennur last November. Soon after reaching the spot, Naveen pounced on her saying he was in love with her and raped her.
Pitiful state
The accused later threatened her with dire consequences if she told anyone. He also told her to comply whenever he called. Fearing for her safety and her family, Mary used to oblige and suffered sexual exploitation for over eight months.
Hennur police have registered a rape case against Naveen and are on the look out for him. "He is on the run since he was exposed and we are trying to track him down," the investigating officer said.

READ MORE - Driver on the run after raping minor for 8 months

Facebook Romeo held for duping teenage girls

Mumbai:

23-year-old convinced at least three teens to hand him cash, jewellery after befriending them online on a popular social networking site by posing as an NRI student in desperate need of money
A Facebook Casanova, who duped several teenage girls into parting with cash and jewellery by posing as an NRI on the social networking site, landed behind bars yesterday.

Vijay Bahadur Khatri (23) is believed to have conned nearly 25 girls by befriending them on Facebook, claiming that his parents were in the United States and then 'impressing' them by spending a lot of money during his meetings with them.
He would then make up a cock-and-bull story about him having squandered his parents' money in a business and say that he needed some money a few lakh rupees urgently to show it to his parents, who would, invariably, be coming in a few days.
"Khatri, who hails from Nepal, used to tell the girls that his parents were in the United States and he had come to India to study.
He would befriend them on Facebook, ask to meet them after getting close and then impress them by wearing good clothes and spending a lot of money on their dates. He would also claim to be a Jain," said a police officer.
"He would later tell the girls that he had lost his parents' money in a business, which he couldn't tell them about, and needed to show a few lakh of rupees to them when they came to India in a few days.
When the girls said they did not have that much money, he would suggest that they give him their mother's jewellery, which he would mortgage and return as soon as his parents went back," he added.
The girls would, however, never hear from Khatri again.

Arrested
The special squad of the Western suburbs arrested Khatri from Kurla after being on his trail for several months based on the complaint filed by a girl (name withheld) with the Khar police.
The girl's statement read, 'Khatri first became a good friend on Facebook. He used to always say that his parents were in the US and he had come to India to study.
After meeting me, he convinced me to bring jewellery from my house as he needed some money to show his parents when they came to India. He had said he would mortgage the jewellery for some time and then return it to me.'
'He stopped answering my calls the day I gave him the jewellery and his phone was perennially switched off after that,' the girl said in her statement.
"Three girls filed an official complaint against Khatri with the police and we have found numbers of 25 other girls on his cellphone.
We are now investigating whether he has duped those girls too," said a police official.
"He was arrested under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code and has been remanded to police custody till July 25," added the official.
Con artist
Vijay Khatri (centre) is believed to have conned nearly 25 girls by befriending them on Facebook, claiming that his parents were in the United States and then 'impressing' them by spending a lot of money during his meetings with them.
He would then make up a cock-and-bull story about him having squandered his parents' money in a business and say that he needed some money a few lakh rupees urgently to show it to his parents, who would, invariably, be coming in a few days.

READ MORE - Facebook Romeo held for duping teenage girls

Assam Rifles seizes drugs near Moreh

IMPHAL: Assam Rifles personnel have seized over 2 lakh Actifed tablets from three persons in the Khudengtabi area near Moreh town bordering Myanmar. According to drug analysts, these tablets are in demand among drug addicts and are often smuggled to Southeast Asian countries through Myanmar.

Discovering the transportation of the banned drugs, personnel of 31 Assam Rifles carried out an operation at Khudentabi along NH 39 on Monday evening, said a statement of the force.

They noticed two to three persons moving with loads on their heads away from the road. On being asked to stop, they dropped the materials and vanished in the jungles.

After a thorough search, the personnel found the tablets which were later handed over to the Narcotics Control Bureau office in Imphal.

On the other hand, 42 AR organized a medical camp at Machi village in the same tribal-dominated district as a humanitarian campaign for the villagers on Tuesday. About 300 people, including children, were treated and given medical and dental advice there. The doctors briefed the villagers about the cause of various water-borne diseases and suggested precautionary measures that need to be taken.

READ MORE - Assam Rifles seizes drugs near Moreh

Mob set afire man's house for trying to rape a girl

Mob set afire man's house for trying to rape a girl
A mob set afire the house of a man, who attempted to rape a 13-year-old girl at Kairenbikhok village in Manipur's interior Thoubal district, official sources said today.
Naorem Basudev accosted the girl who was going to a village pond to collect water and attempted to rape her near a bush after gagging her last evening, the sources said.
The girl who hailed from nearby Salungfam village and was staying at her mother's parental house which was a neighbour of Basudev escaped after biting his hand, they said.
The girl later narrate the while story to local people who collected and set afire the house of Basudev at around 8 pm last night destroying the whole house, sources said adding that basudev was absconding.
No one was inside the house when it was set ablaze, they said.

READ MORE - Mob set afire man's house for trying to rape a girl

Spain busts biggest European drugs network, 20 held

Madrid: Spanish police yesterday announced the seizure of 25 million euros (Rs 156 crore) in cash and the arrest of 20 people in an operation against "the biggest money-laundering and drug-trafficking network in Europe."
A total of 16 people were detained in Spain and four in the United States, said the police, who worked in cooperation with the FBI and judicial authorities in Miami.

Spanish police authorities take a picture of one of the cars that was seized during the bust. The Spanish Police, in collaboration with the FBI have seized 25 million euros and 60 luxury vehicles in the biggest operation against the laundering of drug proceeds held in Europe

It was "the biggest quantity of cash seized at one time," they said in a statement.
It said authorities seized 21 properties in Spain and four in the United States worth a total of 75 million euros, as well as 60 cars.
"One of the money-laundering methods was to buy and sell luxury cars," the statement said.
Spain's proximity to north Africa, a key source of hashish, and its close ties with its former colonies in Latin America, a major cocaine producing region, have made it a major gateway into Europe for drug traffickers.

READ MORE - Spain busts biggest European drugs network, 20 held

Slippery duo amassed Rs15 lakh using US $65

Bangalore: Managed to swindle bizmen, shopkeepers of the amount in just one week; used soap bars disguised as bundles of US currency, which they exchanged for cash
After dreaming up a elaborate scheme and using just US $65 and a few bars of soap, 31-year-old Shafia from Bihar and her associate swindled several unsuspecting victims of lakhs of rupees in a span of a week. Though the Central Crime Branch sleuths managed to nab Shafia and her associate on July 13, several more complaints have been pouring in from in and around the city.

Smooth operators: The accused even used bars of detergent in
between the paper bundles to make them heavy. Representation pic
The Fraud and Misappropriation wing of the CCB, which nabbed the accused, said that Shafia used to approach businessmen and shopkeepers seeking assistance to exchange US currency, as she was in urgent need of money.
"She feigned ignorance and acted like she was illiterate to lure the people. Once the victims fell for the ruse, she handed over the bundles topped off with a few US currency notes above and below," said a police official.
Outwitted
"The accused even used a few bars of detergent in between the paper bundles to make them heavy," said a CCB police officer, adding that she acted quickly and vanished after receiving the cash, but always before the victims realised what was happening.
Within a few days, Shafia managed to amass Rs 10-15 lakh and planned to flee the city before the police could act. Her luck ran out when alert shopkeepers in SJ Park informed the CCB while she was trying to clinch a deal. A team of CCB officials swooped down on her in a swift raid and caught her red-handed.
A detailed inquiry revealed that she had cheated around 10 people in and around city and pocketed around Rs 15 lakh. "We have so far received four complaints against her. Shafia and her associate Mustafa (22), have been remanded to judicial custody," the police said.

READ MORE - Slippery duo amassed Rs15 lakh using US $65

E-ticket racket: IRCTC cracks whip on agents

NEW DELHI: It's the great Indian Railways e-ticketing ripoff. An illegal network of agents who not only plough in profits to the tune of lakhs by conning passengers to cough up five times the e-ticketing fee, but also hacking into the IRCTC website to corner tatkal tickets in bulk.

So, if you wondered why a confirmed tatkal ticket is so difficult to get, you have got your answer. Also, when you are being charged Rs 100 by a travel agent for a confirmed ticket, you are being duped. The actual fee is Rs 20.

The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), the principal agency for ticketing, has recently stumbled upon this scam. Sources said sub-agents have developed a software package through which they hack into the IRCTC website during the opening hours of 8am to 9am and book tatkal tickets .

These shocking revelations have prompted IRCTC to set up an anti-fraud squad at the internet ticketing centre.

In the past three months, the vigilance department has launched surprise raids on about 150 sub-agents. Now, it has fixed the rules for booking e-tickets. First, only a single user can register on one email ID to book tickets. And agents will not be permitted to book tatkal or normal tickets between 8am to 9am when the IRCTC website opens.

Second, registration of all new principal and sub-agents has been stopped.

The department has also found that travel agents have created several IDs to apply for e-tickets, which were later de-activated. In June alone, the department deactivated around 2,831 multiple user IDs used to issue e-tickets. An IRCTC official said, "It has been found that passengers are charged somewhere between Rs 100 and 200 for every e-ticket, but no acknowledgement slip or receipt is given. Instead passengers are told these charges are included in the price of the fare. Also, agents are supposed to charge a fee for every PNR number, but they charge for every passenger on a particular ticket. Agents also don't ask passengers to fill up requisition forms before issuing tickets nor do they display ticket charges anywhere in their offices. This is in gross violation of rules."

READ MORE - E-ticket racket: IRCTC cracks whip on agents

Ban fails to curb 'meow' drug use as partgoers keep taking it 'because they like it

The deadly party drug mephedrone has grown to be more popular than ecstasy, despite being banned last year.
The substance, nicknamed Meow Meow, was hurriedly classified as an illegal Class B drug in April 2010 after being linked to a string of deaths.
But there is little evidence the move has affected its popularity, according to research.

No influence: Whatever the legal status of the latest high, party-goers will keep taking it, reasearch suggests
Fiona Measham, a senior lecturer in criminology who surveyed people in nightclubs for the study, said: ‘Legal status wasn’t considered important. People don’t take anything because it’s legal. They do it because they like it.’
The tragic potential of mephedrone use was highlighted in May last year, when 19-year-old Rebecca Cardwell died from liver failure after taking the drug, just one month after its ban.
The study, by a team at Lancaster University, questioned 308 people at two south London nightclubs.
Half of those said they intended to use drugs that night and mephedrone was the most popular, with 27 per cent planning to take it.
The study found that mephedrone had been the second most commonly used drug within the past month, with 41 per cent taking it. And more than half admitted that they had used mephedrone in the past year.
The findings did not suggest that mephedrone users switched to other ‘legal highs’ when the drug was outlawed.
Miss Measham added: ‘Part of the legal highs debate is this idea that if you ban one, people move on to another. But this did not happen.’
The researchers suggest the rise in mephedrone use may be due to a drop in the purity of ecstasy and cocaine.

READ MORE - Ban fails to curb 'meow' drug use as partgoers keep taking it 'because they like it

Caught on CCTV: Machine gun wielding robbers who raided petrol station for its ATM

Machine gun toting robbers raided a petrol station in a terrifying attack - before taking off with its ATM machine.
The four men crashed a pick-up truck through the front of the Detroit business in the early hours of Saturday morning.
The masked raiders threatened the cashier with AK-47s as they loaded the cash machine into the back of one of their three vans.

Moment of impact: The pickup van crashed into the Detroit petrol station in the early hours of Saturday morning

Armed and dangerous: This blurry CCTV footage shows one of the men carrying an AK-47 machine gun during the raid on the Detroit petrol station
It is not yet clear how much cash was stolen in the raid.
Store owner Abdul Beydoun said: 'We're lucky it happened early in the morning and there weren't any customers around.
'We're glad nobody got hurt.'
He added: 'We never have problems here, everybody is nice. Whoever did this, they've done it last week down the street so everyone has to be careful. It's very disturbing.'

Charge: The pick-up truck is seen here driving towards the building for the first time

Shaking: After the first ram, one of the raiders is here seen trying to lift the ATM machine out of the wall

Making off: The raiders are pictured dragging the ATM machine across the courtyard of the petrol station
The men, who were caught on CCTV camera during the raid, arrived at the station on the 10,000 block of East Jefferson Ave in separate vehicles at 5.45am.
A spotter van parked up by one of the pumps before a pick-up van rammed into the building. One of the men ran into the store to try and pull the ATM out from the wall.

Relieved: Despite the damage, owner Abdul Beydoun said he was glad no-one had been hurt in the raid

Lethal: Osama Bin Laden is pictured here with an AK-47, a weapon more normally associated with warfare than armed robberies
But his efforts proved futile, and so the pick-up rammed again. The ATM became stuck underneath the vehicle and so the men ran outside to tug it along to remove the machine.
They then tried to stuff the ATM into a conversion van but, when it did not fit, they lifted it into another waiting 94-95 green Chrysler minivan and made their getaway.
The other two vehicles were left at the scene.

Aftermath: The vehicle used to ram the station was left at the scene and is now being analysed by police officers

READ MORE - Caught on CCTV: Machine gun wielding robbers who raided petrol station for its ATM

Daughter 'poured lighter fluid over her sex offender dad, set him on fire and left him to die'

• Nina Holbrook set father Carl on fire, police say
• 'Gave neighbour a thumbs-up and said she felt fine'
• Allegedly told uncle outside house: 'I torched him'

A daughter poured a cup of lighter fluid over her sex offender dad and set him on fire before leaving his house while he burned to death, police said.
Nina Holbrook, 30, allegedly set alight dad Carl Holbrook, 50, of Wayne County, Indiana, before passing a neighbour and giving him a ‘thumbs-up’.
She allegedly told him to come inside his house and set about the horrific attack before telling her uncle what she had just done outside.

Alight: Nina Holbrook, pictured, allegedly poured lighter fluid onto the head of her father Carl Holbrook, before giving a neighbour a 'thumbs-up'
Mr Holbrook has been convicted of two sex crimes in 1995 and 2007, when he was jailed for criminal deviate behaviour, reported True Crime Report.
He was waiting outside his home last Friday for a visitor when Ms Holbrook asked him to come inside to discuss something.
But inside a bedroom she poured lighter fluid over his head and ignited it with a candle before he began to burn to death, police said.
She allegedly calmly left the house while he screamed, and bumped into her uncle Harvey Holbrook, whom Mr Holbrook had been waiting for.
She told her uncle: 'I torched him', reported the Palladium-Item.
He found Mr Holbrook with most of his clothes singed, before he was taken to a local hospital and died from his injuries soon after.

Dead: Carl Holbrook was found with most of his clothes burned, before he was taken to a local hospital and died from his injuries soon after
Ms Holbrook then bumped into her neighbour Kyle Carpenter and allegedly told him she had set her father on fire while smiling.
He is said to have asked her: 'Are you alright?' She allegedly smiled and replied: 'No sir, I'm fine. Thank you very much.'
Mr Carpenter claimed she then gave him a thumbs-up sign.
Police are yet to establish a motive in the killing. Ms Holbrook has been charged with felony murder and arson. She is being held without bond.
The exact nature of Mr Holbrook’s past sex crimes is not yet known but he was not a registered sex offender, according to Sheriff's Office records.

READ MORE - Daughter 'poured lighter fluid over her sex offender dad, set him on fire and left him to die'

Neeraj Grover murder: Jerome turns against Maria

Mumbai: In a dramatic turnaround of events, ex Navy Officer Emile Jerome, who is now serving 10 years’ imprisonment for murdering TV professional Neeraj Grover in 2008, has turned against his girlfriend and partner in crime Maria Susairaj.
According to a report published on Sunday in a leading daily, Jerome, who has been found guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, is now challenging the trial court’s verdict stating that it is Maria who is supposed to be serving the punishment and not him, for she is accused No 1.
In an appeal filed in the Bombay High Court he stated, “That motive, if any, was with the Original Accused No 1 for committing the offence and not with the Appellant/Original Accused No 2.”
"We have filed an appeal in the High Court against the sessions court order. The appeal would come up for hearing on July 25 along with Jerome?s bail application," his lawyer Wahab Khan said.
Maria, a Kannada actress who served three years’ imprisonment for hiding evidences of the murder and helping her then beau Jerome in disposing Neeraj’s body, was set free last month.
The appeal further states that the prosecution had not been able to ascertain the time of Grover?s death, and hence, the possibility that the victim was already dead, when Jerome landed in Mumbai, cannot be ruled out.
It further alleges that the investigating agency (Crime Branch) had planted evidence like the knife and plastic can, in which, kerosene was taken to burn the body.
Neeraj’s murder shocked the entire nation as he died the most disgraceful death. His body was chopped into 300 pieces by the two accused and disposed off in the jungles of Thane district, near Mumbai.

READ MORE - Neeraj Grover murder: Jerome turns against Maria

America Most Hated Mother Released From Jail

Casey Anthony released from jail under armed guard in the dead of night just minutes after deadline for her freedom passed

• She is jeered and taunted with shouts of 'killer' as she is released from jail
• Escorted into black SUV with her lawyer and driven to downtwon Orlando
• Spotted at a private airport half an hour after her release

Casey Anthony was jeered and taunted with shouts of 'killer' as she was released from a Florida jail under heavy guard in the dead of night early this morning.
The woman known as America's 'most hated mother' was escorted into a black SUV by armed officers and driven away from the waiting media at high speed.
Her motorcade sped toward downtown Orlando to a car park near the office of her other lawyer, Cheney Mason. By 12:45, she was spotted at a nearby private airport.
Wearing a pink T-shirt, jeans and blue trainers she clamly walked into the waiting vehicle before being driven to an unkown location.
She was escorted by her lawyer Jose Baez as she was led from the jail at 00.13, less than a quarter of an hour after the deadline for her freedom had passed.
As she emerged, a jeer went up from a crowd of protesters who had gathered outside and she was taunted with shouts of 'we hate you' and 'Caylee'.

Released to an uncertain future: Casey Anthony walks out of the Orange County Jail with her lawyer Jose Baez in Orlando, Florida


Freedom: Casey Anthony, left, walks to a SUV with her lawyer Jose Baez after she was released from the Orange County Jail in Orlando, Florida

Heavy security: Casey Anthony is surrounded by police as she and her defense attorney Jose Baez leave the Booking and Release Center at the Orange County Jail after she was acquitted of murdering her daughter Caylee Anthony
Anthony was given $537.68 in cash from her jail account and escorted outside by two sheriff's deputies armed with semi-automatic rifles.
Outrage over Anthony's sensational acquittal for the murder of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee, was pronounced by placards held by angry protesters at the entrance - calling the 25-year-old a devil and a murderer.
Anthony was acquitted of first-degree murder in Caylee's death earlier this month in a sensational trial that was carried extensively on cable television stations. She was found guilty of four counts of lying to police, but with time served and good behaviour credits, she didn't have to serve out her four-year sentence.
As for her plans, it's not clear where Anthony will stay or what she will do next. Her relationship with her parents, George and Cindy, has been strained since defense attorneys accused George Anthony of molesting Casey when she was young. They also said George Anthony made Caylee's death look like a homicide after the girl accidentally drowned in the family pool.
One of her attorneys, Cheney Mason, said on Friday that Anthony had been scared to leave jail, given numerous threats on her life and the scorn of a large segment of the public that believes she had something to do with the death of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee.

Sped away: Casey Anthony (L) and her defense attorney Jose Baez leave the Booking and Release Center . They sped to downtown Orlando and she was later spotted at a private airport

Getaway: Casey Anthony, behind driver, with her lawyer Jose Baez, back left, leaves the the Orange County Jail

Sped away: The black SUV carrying Casey Anthony as seen from a helicopter as it speeds away from Orange County jail

Media frenzy: Members of the media and bystanders wait in front of the Orange County Jail prior to the release of Casey Anthony

Anger: Protestors surge toward an exit out of the Orange County Jail as they await the release of Casey Anthony

Outrage: Protesters gather at the scene of Casey Anthony's forthcoming release from Orange County Corrections Facility in Orlando, Florida
Mason said he isn't taking any chances: 'We are all vigilant and I am armed.'
Another attorney, Charles Greene, said on Friday that Anthony was 'emotionally unstable' and needed 'a little breathing room' after the draining two-month trial.
However, that 'breathing room' may be hard to come by given that Anthony's first steps of freedom will be under the glare of the media spotlight.
The vitriol directed at Anthony has been pointed: After the verdict, anger spilled onto social networks like Facebook and Twitter from people who had spent weeks watching the trial on local and cable television networks. On Friday, Anthony's legal team said it had received an emailed death threat with a manipulated photo showing the 25-year-old woman with a bullet hole in her forehead. It has been forwarded to authorities.

Walking free: Casey Anthony was acquitted of first-degree murder in her two-year-old daughter Caylee's death earlier this month in a sensational trial that was carried extensively on cable television stations
In Orlando and elsewhere, many remain convinced Anthony isn't totally innocent. David Waechter recorded the trial and watched it at home with his wife every day after work. He said Anthony was guilty of 'something, for sure.'
'I'm perplexed. You know there is something there, but you don't know what,' he said. 'Yet she is getting out.'
Others who have witnessed Anthony's saga with front-row seats said they were ready for the media attention to die down.
'Most people I talk to, they're done with it,' Mandy Williams, a 38-year-old county parks employee, said outside a busy grocery store. 'When it came out she was not guilty, people were ticked off.'
Steven Klosterman, who owns a property management company, said if Anthony were to stay in Orlando, 'I think she'll wind up like her daughter,' given the threats she has received.
'Good luck to her,' said Klosterman, 43. 'She's going to have a hard time.'
Security experts have said Anthony will need to hole up inside a safe house protected by bodyguards, perhaps for weeks, in case someone tries to make good on one of those threats. Ideally, several SUVs with tinted windows will pull up to the jail to whisk her away, probably in the middle of the night, the experts said. Jail officials have not disclosed when she will be released.
Once she is out of jail, Anthony will not get special treatment beyond the protection any person would get if there were a credible threat, law enforcement authorities said.
Exactly where she will go remains unclear. It's unlikely she'll return to the home she once shared with her parents, as the trial left her family fractured.

Protest: Two women gather outside the Orlando jail, in a city where many remain convinced Anthony is not totally innocent

'Get over it!' One peaceful activist calls on protesters and media to put a stop to the circus in the hours before Anthony's expected release
Defence attorney Jose Baez argued during the trial that Caylee accidentally drowned in the family pool and that Casey Anthony's father, George, covered it up to make it look like a homicide. Baez also argued that George Anthony molested his daughter when she was a child - which resulted in psychological issues that caused her to lie and act without apparent remorse after Caylee went missing.
'Most of the time you can always go home, but she doesn't have that option,' said Daniel Meachum, an Atlanta lawyer who has represented football star Michael Vick and actor Wesley Snipes. 'Baez has to have somewhere for her to go for her to get herself together.'
'I'd tell her to go to a big house in the middle of nowhere,' said Dallas-based security expert Stuart Diamond, who has worked for celebrities and federal agencies. 'That would be the safest thing for her. It's more of an effort for someone to really follow through on a threat.'
Casey Anthony was convicted of telling detectives several lies in July 2008, when Caylee's disappearance was reported. She said that Caylee had been kidnapped by a non-existent nanny, among other things.
Caylee's skeleton was found that December in some woods near the home Casey Anthony shared with her parents.
Anthony still faces a civil lawsuit. Attorneys for a woman who claimed Anthony defamed her had tried get her deposed before her release from jail but a judge ruled on Friday that the deposition would take place in October. Also on Friday, Anthony filed notice that she will appeal the four misdemeanour counts of lying to law enforcement.
While defence attorneys argued that Caylee's death was an accident, prosecutors alleged that Anthony suffocated her daughter with duct tape because motherhood interfered with her lust for a carefree life of partying with friends and spending time with her boyfriend. Jurors have told various media outlets that prosecutors didn't prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt as required for a conviction - although most have added that they don't think Anthony is innocent.
Anthony's security may be hampered by her limited financial means, though many have predicted lucrative book and TV interview deals. Two security guards around the clock could cost $10,000 a week, experts said.
The best thing she can do for her safety is keep a low profile, said Mark Geragos, a Los Angeles lawyer who has represented Winona Ryder, Michael Jackson and Nicole Ritchie.
'She needs to lay as low as possible until the next big scandal or trial,' Geragos said. 'It's not time to do a photo spread. It's not time to sit down with Diane Sawyer. None of those things. There is no reason to do any of that.'

READ MORE - America Most Hated Mother Released From Jail

Fake PAN card seller gang busted

Crime branch busts fake document racket that would sell PAN cards for a lakh, college certificates and mark sheets for Rs 50,000

The crime branch of Ulhasnagar police has busted a racket involved in the printing and selling of PAN cards, ration cards, voter ID cards, mark sheets, degree and leaving certificates (HSC and SSC) and senior citizen identity cards. The police arrested four people, including a schoolteacher in the matter, last week.


The police with the fake documents

On Friday, Shivajirao Deshmukh, Senior Inspector, Crime branch, informed the media of the arrest of the accused, identified as Yogesh Vinayak Joshi (34), Ramesh Kondiba Gaikwad (46), Suresh Sadhu Umap alias Buva (47) and Sanjay Sitaram Phulore (35).

Acting on a tip off, the crime branch team laid a trap at Mahalaxmi Estate Agent, Mahavir palace, Ulhasnagar-5. They recovered more than 40 PAN cards, 43 senior citizen identity cards, computers, a scanner, a printer and other materials used to print the documents. The seized articles, in various stages of completion, are worth Rs 2 lakh. The accused would sell the school certificates (leaving certificate and marksheet) for Rs 1 lakh, while the fake cards would be sold for Rs 50,000 each.

The accused were involved in this racket for a year. Police are now looking for the people who sought fake certificates and documents from the gang.

"We have arrested the accused under section 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) and 34 (acts done by several persons) of IPC," said Deshmukh.

Joshi, Gaikwad and Buva are residents of Ulhasnagar and Phulore, a teacher by profession, is a resident of Ambernath.

READ MORE - Fake PAN card seller gang busted

Aspiring model gang-raped - Image for representative purpose only
Ahmedabad, Jul 16 : A 20 year-old aspiring model from Damnagar village near Amreli district was allegedly gang raped here by two persons, police said today.
"An aspiring model from Damnagar village on arriving here had met one Kajal who offered her a rented accommodation. But after a dispute few days later, she was raped by the latter's boy friend Mayur and one of his accomplice," they said.
"The girl in her complaint has alleged that she was beaten by Kajal and her two male friends, before being raped.
Kajal and her two accomplices also had snatched Rs 10,000 from her," they said adding that the accomplices of Kajal were sons of one Jeetubhai.
"After the fight she had gone to have snacks when Mayur alongwith one of his accomplices approached her," police said.
"The duo took her to a flat on a motorbike belonging to one Jeetubhai in Sola area of the city, who was known to Mayur and Kajal," they said.
"The girl in her complaint has stated that she was raped by the duo in the flat," they added.
A case has been registered at the Sola police station and investigations are underway.

READ MORE -

Placement agency sexually exploited several minor girls

Delhi

Three teenagers rescued from New Friends Colony, another 20-year-old is pregnant. Main accused is on the run
Tortured, troubled and terrified. Four girls--three juvenile and one 20-year-old-- were rescued from New Friends Colony by cops on July 11. They were being sexually exploited by Janman Joy Kamal, the owner of Joy placement agency, in the name of providing jobs. The eldest of the four is pregnant.

Driven by poverty: The girls were brought to the Capital by the
accused mostly from parts of Bihar.
"Joy managed to give the cops a slip while his associate Laili was arrested. Joy was raping the 20-year-old girl Poonam (name changed) for the last six months. She is four months pregnant. Doctors have told us that she will have to give birth. But the victim wants an abortion," said a senior police official. Speaking to MiD DAY one of the minor girls alleged that Joy had molested them as well.
The tale of terror
"He used to beat us up when we objected. He raped Poonam and tried to rape us as well. He molested us. We were scared and did not report this to anyone," said Neha (name changed).
Poonam was brought to the Capital by Laili. She was deployed as domestic help in the house of one Vandana who lives in South Delhi. Two days ago Poonam fell unconscious at her employer's house. She was rushed to a hospital. The doctor confirmed that she is four months pregnant. Poonam then approached the accused placement agency owner Janman Joy and had an argument with him. Joy allegedly beat her up brutally.
"Poonam then made a PCR call at around 8 pm. Police thought that it was just a case of a scuffle. But when cops reached the spot the situation was dramatically different," said a police source. The source said Devender Chaudhary, the owner of the house from where the accused used to run his placement agency, was questioned by cops. He said that around six months ago he gave the first floor of his house on rent to Joy. The accused is on the run.
"20 girls have been brought to the Capital by Joy in the past six months, mostly from parts of Bihar. The accused has a previous criminal record. An FIR has been registered against him at Hauz Khas police station," said a police official.
'First aid'
Rape victims will soon get financial assistance ranging up to Rs 3 lakh. There will also be a provision for interim relief of up to Rs 20,000 and restorative support of Rs 50,000, which will be given within 15 days of the incident. This was stated in a landmark draft scheme of the Centre submitted before the Delhi high court on Wednesday. The court directed the Centre to finalise the scheme and notify it within six weeks. Besides financial assistance, the women and child development ministry's scheme aims for "restorative justice" in the form of legal and medical assistance, shelter, counselling and other support services. The relief can be accessed by a woman, minor girl or legal heirs of an affected woman. In certain special cases involving minor girls, mentally challenged or handicapped women, suffering from HIV/AIDS or STDs the amount can go up to R5 lakh.

READ MORE - Placement agency sexually exploited several minor girls

Meet the woman who married 14 US soldiers and stole their money

London: A woman in US dubbed 'Military Mistress' for allegedly marrying at least 14 men and stealing thousands from them, has claimed that she was just unlucky in love, after she was sentenced to jail

Bobbi Ann Finley has been accused of stalking, conning and stealing up to 100,000 dollars each from American soldiers for almost two decades.

But the 35-year-old, who is currently serving three years in an Alabama jail after pleading guilty to theft by deception, has said that her marriages to the servicemen were not a con.

Finley, who had nine children with as many men, admitted that she might have destroyed lives, but claims she is a victim who has had a hard upbringing.

"I wasn't running a con. I wanted protection, the protection that I should have had growing up... I married these guys I couldn't love," the Daily Mail quoted her as telling ABC News.

"I was looking for love. I was looking for understanding, I was looking for someone to say, 'You know, it is going to be OK'.

"In many of the cases, you look and you started out and you get married and you're thinking, 'Oh, I'm going to live happily ever after.' And then you realise as soon it's done... it was a mistake," she said.

For nearly 20 years, Finley allegedly preyed on military bases where she lied to servicemen claiming to be a wealthy heiress, the daughter of a general or an injured veteran about to get a large pay-out.

READ MORE - Meet the woman who married 14 US soldiers and stole their money

Picasso Thief Busted

NJ wine steward nabbed for theft of $200K sketch

Surveillance video provided by Lefty O'Doul's restaurant shows the suspect walking with the stolen Picasso. (AP Photo/Lefty O'Doul's)

A thief who strolled out of a San Francisco gallery with a stolen Picasso has been arrested and the 1965 pencil sketch has been recovered, police say. The suspect, a man who flew in from New Jersey the day before the theft, was found staying with friends in Northern California's wine country, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. Police say he had the sketch ready for shipment and it "would have been in a FedEx box somewhere" if they had found him a day later.

Investigators tracked the man down after finding a cabbie who took him from near the gallery to an upscale hotel. The 30-year-old suspect, who has no major criminal record, has worked as a wine steward in high-end East Coast restaurants. "We can assume he has good taste, and how he was going to finance that good taste, perhaps, was based upon his success in obtaining a valuable piece of art," the chief investigator says.

READ MORE - Picasso Thief Busted

Woman cuts ex’s genitals

An attempt by a Pakistan man to get in touch with his divorced wife ended in disaster as the woman chopped off his genitals in a city hotel here.

Abid Pervaiz, 25, was lucky to have survived the attack, a doctor on duty said.

"He was brought to the Jinnah hospital in a bad shape this afternoon with severe genital mutilation wounds. It is a miracle that the man had survived despite severe bleeding," doctor said.

According to Mehmoodabad police station's duty officer SI Mohammad Azeem, Abid hails from Sukkur and was living with some distant relatives. He was divorced, but began communicating with his ex-wife again.

The couple decided to meet again and hired a room at a city hotel, where the woman allegedly mixed some sleeping pills in his juice. When Abid woke up, he discovered that his genitals had been cut off, Azeem said.

"Abid told me that before he passed out completely, he heard his former wife speaking to someone on the phone, saying that she had carried out her plan," the officer said.

READ MORE - Woman cuts ex’s genitals

Woman with heroin held in Manipur

IMPHAL: Assam Rifles personnel have seized 310 grams of heroin from a tribal woman at Khudengtabi village close to Manipur's Moreh town bordering Myanmar.

Discovering the transportation of banned drugs, personnel of 31 Assam Rifles set up a frisking team at Khudengtabi along NH-39 on Friday and intercepted the woman along with the contraband kept in three packets from a van.

Drug analysts said the Imphal-Moreh section of NH 39 is the key transit route of drugs, especially heroin, smuggled from the notorious Golden Triangle through the porous Indo-Myanmar border. The price of one kg heroin in the black market is over Rs 1 crore.

Nengnedhong Haokip (37) of Phoilen village has been handed over to the Customs office at the border town, said an Assam Rifles statement.

On the other hand, 23 Assam Rifles nabbed a self-styled sergeant of the underground Kangleipak Communist Party, Military Council (KCP-MC), Lamyamba Khuman group, during a counter-insurgency operation at Leitanpokpi village in Imphal East on Friday.

Salam Ibohal (42) of Leitanpokpi Mayai Leikai has been handed over to Lamlai Police, said the paramilitary force's statement.

READ MORE - Woman with heroin held in Manipur