Vaze destroyed 5 mobiles on day Hiran’s body was found: NIA
Two police inspectors and a senior police officer of Mumbai police are under the scanner and are likely to be summoned by the NIA in a day or two in connection with Mansukh Hiran’s murder case. Sachin Vaze, the key accused, has reportedly told NIA that on 6 March, a day after Hiran’s body was found, he destroyed five mobile phones, including his official one. The NIA is taking the help of experts to retrieve the data of Vaze’s official mobile phone, which would be digital evidence in the Hiran murder case. Sources said Vaze was using 13 phones.
A hotelier, whose statement was recorded by the NIA on Thursday, has reportedly said that on 3 March, when he went to hand over the “hafta collection” to Vaze, he had seen him, Hiran, arrested constable Vinayak Shinde and a cop of the crime branch in a meeting. Sources said NIA wants to question this inspector as to what he was doing in the CIU office, though he was attached to another unit.
The NIA also wants to question a senior police officer who had allegedly called up a businessman from south Mumbai to pay a bill of Rs 13 lakh for Vaze’s 100-day stay in a five-star hotel. The businessman told NIA he had lodged a complaint that a jeweller had cheated him of Rs 50 or Rs 60 lakh, and the senior officer had told him that if he paid the hotel bill, Vaze will help him recover his money. Such case has also been noticed before where Vaze and his gang had tried to extort money from Firoz Taapiwala, builder and lawyer by profession. Firoz Taapiwala said that he had filed a complainant in one of his case, in that matter Vaze and gang started demanding money. And when he denied paying the amount, then Vaze threatened him and the very next day with the orders of DCP, he cancelled his license of the gun. Later, he received a threatening call from one NCP leader saying that, if he has to win this case, he will have to give them the demanded amount of money. Instead of helping the complainant, they used to threaten them by getting them calls from underworld gang. Members of this gang used to call them and threaten them. And they used to extort money from the complainant itself. And if the complainant denies giving money, they used to put political pressure on them, said Taapiwala. 65 officers of the Mumbai Police Crime Branch were transferred amid the Vazegate scandal. Notably, the long list also features Mumbai API and close-aid of Sachin Vaze, Riyaz Qazi, who had been questioned by the NIA in connection with the Mukesh Hiren murder case. Interrogation is underway. Consecutively, he has been summoned by NIA officials. He can turn an approver for NIA against Vaze.