MARGAO, JUNE 12
The police conducted a series of raids in Colva, Nuvem and Majorda in the last 24 hours in search of former tourism minister Mickky Pacheco, who has been eluding the Goa police for questioning in the Nadia Torrado death case.
The Colva police on Saturday evening searched a house at Majorda and maintained a close vigil on a house at Colva.
It is learnt that the police had conducted a search of a house of an elected representative at Nuvem last night as part of the exercise to lay their hands on the former minister.
Sources at the Colva police station disclosed that the police led by station incharge, PI Tushsar Vernekar had proceeded to Betalbatim and Majorda late this evening in search of the elusive MLA.
The team also maintained a strict vigil at Colva as to nab Pacheco, even as the police team returned without much success.
The raids come a day after the Crime Branch with the assistance of the local police raided the business premises of Pacheco at Betalbatim last evening as part of the investigations into Nadia Torrado death case.
Sources in the know said the police also searched the house of a close supporter from Nuvem last night.
Incidentally, the police had raided a hotel earlier this week where Pacheco’s legal counsels were putting up with the hope of nabbing the Benaulim MLA, but in vain.
Though the police could not say whether they had any intelligence inputs indicating the presence of the former minister along the coastal belt, sources in the police headquarters say the raids and searches are part of a strategy to put pressure on the elusive MLA and force him to surrender to the investigating agency for his interrogation.
Sources in the know, however, say the question of any surrender by the Benaulim MLA will be known only on Monday given that the courts were closed during the weekend and that the appeal filed by his OSD Lyndon Monteiro will come up before the High Court on June 14.
