MCOCA invoked against Navi Mumbai drug gang; Thane court acquits two in chain-snatching case

The Navi Mumbai police have invoked the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against a gang allegedly involved in supplying mephedrone across Navi Mumbai, Mumbai and Nashik, while a special court in Thane has acquitted two men accused of chain-snatching and running an organised crime syndicate in a separate case.

In the Navi Mumbai case, police also detained a 35-year-old woman, Sitabai Santosh Ingle, under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (PIT-NDPS Act) to prevent her alleged continued involvement in the sale of narcotics, according to a police press release.

The drug supply gang, allegedly headed by 36-year-old Imran Hussain Khan, came under scrutiny after police seized 344 grams of mephedrone, valued at nearly Rs 86 lakh, from a resident of Ulwe in Navi Mumbai in May, the release said.

Khan had previously been involved in serious offences, including attempted murder and assault, police said.

In a separate case, Special Judge V G Mohite on Thursday acquitted Rijwan Ismail Shaikh and Mahammad Alam Aslam of robbery charges under the Indian Penal Code and provisions of MCOCA in connection with a chain-snatching incident reported in 2022.

According to the prosecution, on May 22, 2022, a woman and her husband were walking near Khadakpada Circle in Kalyan West when two men on a motorcycle, wearing helmets, snatched her gold chain and fled. An FIR was subsequently registered at Mahatma Phule Chowk Police Station.

After the two accused were arrested in another case, police linked them to several chain-snatching incidents, invoked MCOCA provisions and claimed to have recovered the stolen ornament through a jeweller.

However, the court found that the prosecution witnesses had not clearly seen the faces of the alleged robbers because they were wearing helmets. It also noted that the police had not conducted a test identification parade during the investigation.

The court further held that the confessional statement recorded by the Deputy Commissioner of Police was invalid because the accused had not been given the mandatory 24-hour period to reconsider their statements.

The court ordered the immediate release of both men from jail.  (with inputs from PTI)