TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: An advocate in a complaint to the police has alleged that five masked armed men held him hostage on the intervening night of July 23-24 and demanded extortion of Rs two crore from him.
Panjim Police Inspector Rajendra Prabhudesai said when advocate Joseph Cardozo reached his flat, he was confronted by five masked men who were already at his home. There was however no break-in the house, he said adding the complainant’s hands were tied with a rope and was held at the gun point till about 5am when the accused fled.
“The unidentified men were already in the house when the advocate entered…They robbed Rs 1.50 lakh cash, passport and demanded Rs two crore from him. He was kept hostage till 5am,” the officer said quoting the complaint.
The case is not being treated as a normal dacoity, Prabhdesai said. “It is a much bigger case. It could be a property dispute because the complainant is representing a Mumbai-based person, who has about four cases against him at Panjim and Calangute police station. The property in Calangute has some brokers. According to the complaint, the accused were asking the advocate to settle the dispute,” he added.
While one was Konkani speaking, the others spoke in Hindi.
A case under Sections 452 (trespass), 323 (causing hurt), 395 (dacoity), 384 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 3 read with 25 of the Indian Arms Act has been registered.
The investigation will cover all the angles to establish the exact motive, said the police.
