Police teams formed to trace other absconders
PANAJI
More than a week after going into hiding followed by the rejection of his anticipatory bail plea, Janardhan Khorate was finally arrested by the Crime Branch late Wednesday night in connection with the forced eviction of tenants from a house in Anjuna.
Khorate, the prime accused, along with his accomplices, is charged with allegedly forcing entry into the residence at St Michael Waddo, evicting tenants without court orders and decamping with valuables including electronic devices and Rs 3 lakh in cash.
The Anjuna Police registered a case against seven persons including bouncers and the owner of a security agency on February 10, two days after the incident. Three persons were arrested on February 13, followed by Khorate’s arrest on Wednesday. The Crime Branch has formed special teams to track down the remaining accused.
“Khorate was arrested on Wednesday night. A major portion of the stolen property has also been recovered under the panchanama. Teams have been formed to nab the other absconding accused,” Superintendent of Police (Crime Branch) Rahul Gupta said.
With the Aryan Security Agency allegedly providing bouncers to Khorate, the Crime Branch has decided to write to the relevant authority to cancel its licence for not having the required permissions under the Private Security Agency Regulation Act.
Khorate, who held the power of attorney for the house, had engaged bouncers armed with weapons to forcibly dispossess the Sinary family, as observed in the prima facie stage by the Additional Sessions Judge-2 in Mapusa.
The police confirmed that bouncers carrying sickles and koitas forcibly entered the house by damaging the main door and taking advantage of the complainant's absence. The housemaid present there was abducted and later abandoned at an unknown location.
The FIR under sections 189 (2) (unlawful assembly), 191 (2) (rioting), 329 (4) (trespass), 331 (3) (housebreaking), 305 (theft), 351 (4) (criminal intimidation) read with 190 (common intention) of the BNS was recently transferred from Anjuna police to the Crime Branch. Mapusa SDPO Sandesh Chodankar was also transferred for alleged bias while handling the case earlier.
