Malad housewife stabbed, burnt to death

18th July 2012

A 46-year-old woman was found dead, her body covered with burns, at her Malad West residence on Monday. While it initially appeared to be an accidental death, an autopsy revealed the woman had been stabbed to death.

Suzanne Rodriques, the victim, lived on the sixth-floor of Marve View society on Marve Road with her teenaged daughters aged 14 and 17. Her husband, Allwyn, is employed at Bahrain. On Monday, Suzanne went to buy provisions at around 11.30am after her daughters left. The society watchman saw Suzanne return by noon but didn't see any strangers go to her flat thereafter.

"Around 1.30pm, her younger daughter came home from school and knocked on the door. But there was no response and she decided to wait till her older sister returned from college by 2 pm. The two girls did not have a spare set of house keys and grew worried as a sharp odour of kerosene had been emanating from the house all the while. The girls then informed their neighbours who called up the fire brigade. The door was broken down and Suzanne was found lying on the living room floor," said senior inspector Abdul Rauf Shaikh.

Police had also been called by then. Suzanne's face, neck and torso was covered with burns and there were some pieces of paper stuck to her body. She was rushed to a local hospital, where doctors declared her dead. The police informed her brother Steven who lives in north Mumbai.

"Initially, the family did not suspect anything amiss and believed it to be an accidental death. But we had a nagging doubt that something was wrong. The body was sent for an autopsy to the Borivli post-mortem centre where it was revealed that Suzanne had three stab injuries, two in her stomach and one on her neck. There's a possibility that the killer set her ablaze after stabbing her, to put the police off track. Turpentine oil had possibly been emptied on her and she sustained around 40% burns," an official said.

Allwyn flew down to Mumbai on Tuesday after being informed of his wife's death. An inspection of the 1-BHK flat revealed that Suzanne's jewellery was intact, but Rs 5,000 was missing from the drawers. "We suspect insider involvement in the case. Suzanne must have known the killer and let him inside the house on her own. We are questioning frequent visitors to the flat and those who were friends with Suzanne," the official said. The watchman is also being questioned. A case of murder has been registered by the Malwani police.

News from Times of India

Two attacks on women in 24 hours

18th July 2012

Two women were attacked in the city within a span of 24 hours.The first incident took place at Kamala Raman Nagar in Govandi on Monday night. A 26-year-old housewife was molested and assaulted by five youths when she went to a public toilet in the area around 11.45pm.

"As soon as I stepped out of the toilet, the men, all of whom are my neighbours, caught my hand and started misbehaving with me. They passed lewd comments at me," the woman said in her complaint. The victim somehow managed to free herself and rushed home. Around 12.30am on Tuesday, the accused barged into her house after breaking the door open. "They misbehaved with me and assaulted me," the victim said in her complaint. "They also assaulted my mother and relatives."

 Senior inspector (Shivaji Nagar) R S Agarwal said, "The commotion alerted the neighbours, but the men fled when they realized a crowd had started gathering."

Two of the men, Kalia Shafique (26) and Kalia Papa (28), have been arrested. Investigators said the men are known local goons. The cops are now searching for the other three men. The accused have been booked for outraging the modesty of a woman, criminal intimidation, assault and trespass.

In the second incident, a rationing officer was manhandled by some residents at Kurar village in Malad (E) on Tuesday. Rationing officer Samiksha Shirdhankar had gone to Sanjay Nagar with eight officers to inspect homes of residents who had an LPG connection but were still buying kerosene through their ration cards.

"Around 3.45pm, Shirdhankar had an argument with some of the residents. Two of them manhandled her. Following a complaint lodged by Shirdhankar, The two, Nasif Sayyad and Sajid Patel, were arrested," an officer said.

News from Times of India

Eyewitness rushes child to hospital, offers gold chain for treatment

12th July 2012

A 12-year-old school-going boy was luckless enough to get hit by a speeding biker, but was fortunate to be found by a good samaritan, who took him to hospital and even deposited his gold chain with the doctors as collateral for the medical expenses.

The incident took place at Jitendra road near DJ High School at Malad on Tuesday around 7 am. Meet Shah, 22, was on his way to college when he saw a biker come and hit a boy on a bicycle. Instead of helping the victim, the biker fled from the scene.

"I took the boy to a clinic in an auto and admitted him for treatment as he was still unconscious. I was in a hurry, as I needed to get to my college for some project work, but was also concerned about his health. I handed my gold chain worth Rs. 60,000 to the doctor and also my mobile no. I got my chain back in the afternoon and the victim's family thanked me profusely," Shah told MiD DAY.

Heart of gold
"We are very grateful to him as he took Kashyap to the clinic for treatment at the right time. He also gave his gold chain to the doctor, which no one else would have done. My son currently has pain in his right leg and hand," the victim's father said.

"The biker escaped to avoid police action. The victim was injured and that youth took him to a doctor for medical care," said Ronak Savla, a witness.

"Initially, I was angry about his act, but later realised that not only has my son helped save a life, but has also set a good example for others. I am proud of him," said Bipin Shah, Meet's father.

Meet Shah is a first-year Bachelor of Mass Media (BMM) student at Nagindas Khandwala College. He stays at Bhupendra Niwas, Jitendra Road, Malad.

As the victim's injuries were not serious, no police complaint has been made.


News from NDTV

45-year-old wanted for raping minor

10th July 2012

The Kurar police are looking for a 45-year-old man who kidnapped and raped a minor. The accused stayed in the same neighborhood as the victim at a slum colony in Malad East.

"He developed a relationship with the 16-year-old victim, who lived in the same slum as him.

Later, the girl's mother was returned home and was shocked to discover that the minor was pregnant. Since abortion would have been risky, Doctors said abortion would pose a risk to the girl's life.

the girl delivered the child. The accused kidnapped her and the newborn and left the city," a police official said. The police hasn't revealed the identity of the accused and are trying to trace his whereabouts.

News from Times of India

Boy falls from Malad building, dies

10th July 2012

A 12-year-old boy, Adarsh Rathod, fell to his death from the terrace of a six-storey building adjacent to his residence at Malad (East) on Sunday. Prima facie, the police believe that the fall was accidental, but will carry out a detailed probe to rule out any other possibility.

Adarsh was a Class IX student at the St Francis School in Malad. He stayed at Parekh Nagar inPrabhat Society, with his grandmother, mother Bhavna, and older brother. Chirag (17).

Adarsh's father, Amrutlal, had died when he was a toddler. Amrutlal's job in the railways was given to his wife after his death.

"On Sunday night, Adarsh had dinner with his family. He told his mother that he was going out to play. Around 9.30pm, he went to the terrace of Surya Society. Usually the terrace of Surya Society is locked, but as repairs were going on, it had been kept open on Sunday. Police suspect the ledge wasn't high enough and Adarsh could have lost his footing, slipping to his death," a police officer said.

Adarsh was rushed to a local hospital first and then to Bhagwati Hospital in Borivli where he was declared dead.

They identified Adarsh as he resided in the same neighbourhood and informed his mother immediately. Adarsh was rushed to the Sanjivani Hospital at Malad and then to the Bhagwati Hospital at Borivali, where he was declared dead. An autopsy was conducted at the Borivali post-mortem centre and his body was handed over to his family. They have left for their hometown for carrying out the last rites.

An accidental death record has been lodged by the Kurar police. Bhavna's statement has been recorded. Officials said there were no eyewitnesses when Adarsh fell so they would probe the sequence of events leading to his death. The police are also making inquiries with neighbours of the family.

News from Times of India

Denied a swim, mob abuses, manhandles lifeguard at Gorai

9th July 2012

Little did the lifeguards posted at Gorai know they would be a targeted by bunch of beach goers for trying to save their lives. On Sunday, a group of 20-25 youth abused and manhandled lifeguard Devram Bhangare, allegedly after he tried to dissuaded them from entering rough waters during a high tide.

The local police have filed a non-cognisable (NC) offence against Bhavesh Tare (21), a Thane resident who along with his nearly 20 friends abused and manhandled Bhangare, who was posted by the fire brigade.

“The group of youths, all in their 20s, was playing at the beach before they began taking to the sea at around 3:40pm (high tide time), when Bhangare and the other lifeguards alerted them against it. The group, however, became violent and began abusing the guards,” said a senior fire official requesting anonymity.

 A similar incident took place at Aksa beach in Malad, where a person abused the lifeguard after being asked not to enter the waters.

This is not the first time that the lifeguards have faced beach goers’ wrath. In the over three weeks this monsoon, two such instances, in Dadar and Juhu, were reported. “In Sunday’s case, too, the youths told the guards that they should not be bothered about their lives. In such a case, how are we supposed to save lives?” the fire brigade official asked.

Observing that most drowning death cases involved people inebriated by alcohol, BMC chief officer (disaster management cell) Mahesh Narvekar had, post-Dadar incident, said, “Two of our lifeguards deployed at Gorai cannot prevent a group of 30-35 youths and must bear the brunt of their nuisance.”

Gorai village sarpanch Rossi D’Souza advocated that beach goers, like the local villagers, should follow precautions listed by the civic men. “People coming here from outside the city should co-operate with the guards, who are doing the crucial job of saving lives,” D’Souza said.

 News from DNA

Mumbai Police bust prostitution racket, rescue 14 girls

The social service branch of Mumbai police on Friday busted a major prostitution racket running under the guise of beer bar in Malad. Fourteen bar girls who were forced into prostitution by the hotelier were rescued and were send to rescue centre in Chembur.
Acting on the specific tip off the SS branch, Mumbai police, led by assistant commissioner of police Vasant Dhoble, on late Friday raided Sangam restuarant and beer bar at Daftari road at Malad west and arrested three hotel staff for running prostitution racket. The three arrested have been identified as Ranga Gowda, the manager of the bar, Samal Kalichandra Mazumdar and Satish Agarwal.

This is the second time the police have raided this bar in last one year. Police are now looking for the hotel owner Sunil Pawar.
All the accused have been booked under the prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act and have been remanded to police custody.
Police said that they will see that Sargam hotel's licence is suspended.

News from Indiatimes

Student harassment issue: Education department to conduct inquiry

6th July 2012

Almost a week after a group of parents of students studying at Dr S Radhakrishnan Vidyalay in Malad (W) submitted a written complaint to the commissioner of police about alleged harassment of their children by school authorities, the education department will conduct an inquiry into the matter.
On July 3, the Malad police had called for a joint meeting between the school authorities and parents to verify the claims of parents. But the management sent out a letter to the cops at the last minute, asking them to defer the meet till July 5. "We were not surprised with this move by the school because they know they are at fault," said a parent. The meeting has now been postponed and will be held on July 7.

For over a year now, a group of parents have been protesting against the school's fee hike calling it "arbitrary" and had refused to pay fees. They then alleged that their children were constantly being targeted and harassed by school teachers following which they had lodged a complaint with the Malad police station. After repeated requests to the police to look into the matter, the parents finally wrote to the commissioner of police.
"We will verify the claims of the parents," said a senior education official. School authorities remained unavailable for comments.

News from India Times

Locals hold out god to shoo BMC away

7th July 2012

A branch of a tree at Malad (W), which houses a temple and which the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had declared dangerous around three years ago, fell on Friday morning.
The disaster management cell of the BMC said no one was injured when a branch fell outside the railway station in Malad (W) around 8am. But locals claimed that a person received minor injuries, who was then treated at a nearby hospital.
An official from P (north) ward office said the tree was immediately trimmed after the incident. “We rushed to the spot and found that two other branches needed to be trimmed. So, we attended to them immediately.”
The official claimed that the tree needs to be cut down, but locals have been fighting tooth and nail against it. “The tree was declared dangerous around three years ago. The tree authority also gave the green light to cut it down. But locals are opposing this, citing religious sentiments. Illegal hawkers are also protesting to save their stalls.”
The tree, which is in the middle of the road that leads to SV Road, houses a temple and around 10 illegal stalls. It leads a major traffic bottleneck during peak hours.
Ganesh Ratnapur, a trustee of the temple, however, claimed that they hadn’t received any notice from the BMC stating that the tree is dangerous and needs to be cut down.
Voicing the sentiments of several locals, a hawker said, “The temple has been here for last 100 years and is a sacred place. We won’t let the BMC cut the tree as it is not dangerous.”

News from DNA

Heavy rains lash Mumbai; 1 killed in building collapse

4th July 2012

One person was killed when a four-storeyed building in the city collapsed here today following heavy rains, fire brigade sources said.
The building Gopal Bhavan, located in Mamletdar Wadi in suburban Malad, caved in following rains.
The residents of the building had already been evacuated after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) declared the structure as "dangerous".
The deceased was identified as Chandrakant Singhvi. Five fire engines were rushed to the spot, they added. Meanwhile, heavy rains lashed the metropolis since last night causing disruption in rail traffic while the flight operations remained normal.

There was water-logging in some areas in the city and suburbs.
The movement of vehicles on roads was disrupted and traffic snarls were witnessed at some places.
"Trains on the Central line are running about 20-25 minutes late," Central Railway spokesperson said.
However, the services on Western line was normal. "All flight operations are normal and there is no disruption or any delay," Chhattrapati Shivaji International Airport spokesperson said.

News from India Times

Snatchers nabbed with the help of CCTV footage

3rd July 2012

The Malad police took the aid of closed-circuit camera footage from a restaurant to nab two chain-snatchers recently. The duo, Akram Ansari (23) and Ashraf Syed (22), had robbed an elderly woman of her gold necklace at Malad West.
Diana D'Souza, the complainant, was walking down to Orlem Church with her 20-year-old daughter on Sunday morning. Around 10 am, D'Souza (51) and her daughter had reached the traffic signal at Mith Chowky on their way to church. They were crossing the road when Akram and Ashraf rode up on a Bajaj Discover bike. One of the men snatched D'Souza's chain. The accused-duo fled before D'Souza or her daughter could raise an alarm. D'Souza later lodged a complaint with the Malad police.

"Unknown to the accused, the closed-circuit cameras installed at a nearby restaurant had captured the entire incident. A shopkeeper had also noted down the registration number of the Bajaj Discover bike," a police official said. Based on the CCTV footage and details provided by eyewitnesses, the Malad police nabbed Akram and Ashraf on Monday. They were produced before a metropolitan court for remand.

News from Times of India