MCOCA invoked against former Dawood Ibrahim aide

Mumbai: The Mumbai police crime branch has invoked the MCOCA against a former aide of Dawood Ibrahim arrested in connection with an extortion case. The court Tuesday remanded Parveen and Salim Penwala alias Salim Maharaj, a top police informer, in police custody till February 21.

The police on Tuesday produced Parveen and Maharaj before special MCOCA court Judge D.S. Deshmukh, who remanded both persons to police custody till Friday.

The police sought remand of the duo saying that the provisions of the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act had been imposed and the probe agency needed to interrogate the accused further to find out the involvement of other persons in the crime, and how many other people had been targeted by them.

The crime branch of the Mumbai police arrested the duo in connection with an extortion case involving gangster Ejaz Lakdawala. According to the police, both of them helped gangster Lakdawala, who demanded money from the complainant.

The Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) arrested Lakdawala (50) — once a close aide of fugitive don Dawood Ibrahim, and wanted in 25 cases in the metropolis — on January 8 from Patna in Bihar.

A Byculla-based builder gave an application to the police last year claiming that Lakdawala was demanding extortion money from him. Meanwhile, the police arrested Parveen and Maharaj in another case involving Lakdawala.

While seeking their custody, the police also informed the court that it was yet to arrest Lakdawala in this case. Although Parveen’s lawyer Bharat Tiwari opposed the plea seeking remand by contending that Parveen did not have any connection with Lakdawala.

He argued that the case in which Parveen had been arrested was of 2013 and his client was not part of any organised crime syndicate and hence, MCOCA could not be applied to the case.

However, after hearing the arguments, the Judge remanded them to police custody.