Two women have been arrested in Mumbai for allegedly demanding a ransom of Rs 10 crore by implicating a businessman’s son in a staged molestation case, police said.
The women, identified as Hemlata Aditya
Patkar alias Hemlata Bane (39) and Amrina Iqbal Zaveri alias Alice alias Amrina Matthew Fernandes (33), were arrested by Mumbai Police’s Anti-Extortion Cell while allegedly accepting money during a trap laid on the basis of a complaint filed by a Goregaon-based businessman.
The complainant, Arvind Goyal, runs a firm named Goyal & Sons Infra LLP in Goregaon West. According to police, Goyal’s son Ritam got engaged to Yashvi Shah on November 5, and a celebration party was organised at a hotel in the Amboli area on the night of November 14, as per media reports.
Police said that at around 2:40 am on November 15, after the party ended, Ritam, his fiance Yashvi, her brother and a friend were in a lift when an unknown woman entered and accused Ritam of pointing a laser light at her, leading to a verbal altercation. When the lift reached the ground floor, the woman allegedly raised an alarm and created a commotion, following which a molestation case was registered against Ritam at Amboli police station.
The police said that the two women later allegedly demanded Rs 10 crore from the family to settle the matter out of court. On December 20, Hemlata Patkar allegedly called Arvind Goyal and threatened him at a cafe in Andheri West, warning that his son would be jailed for life if the payment was not made. After negotiations, the demand was reportedly reduced to Rs 5.5 crore.
Together with the businessman, the Mumbai Police’s Anti-Extortion Cell laid a trap for the two women. The accused were called to the Lower Parel area to offer a Rs 1.5 crore of bribe in cash, including fake currency notes. The police arrested the two women red-handed and registered an FIR.
Police said a third accused, identified as Utkarsh, is also involved in the extortion racket and is currently absconding. A search operation has been launched to trace him, and further investigation is underway.
