Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad brings gangster Suresh Pujari back

Dreaded gangster Suresh Pujari has finally been nabbed after an operation that involved the Mumbai Crime Branch, Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad, as well as the Indian Embassy in Phillipines and Phillipines authorities. While the gangster was arrested by Philippines authorities in October following a tip-off by the Mumbai Crime Branch, the process to get him deported took several months with Pujari foiling two attempts to bring him to India.

A team of ATS brought him to Delhi airport on Tuesday, from where he was arrested and then brought to Thane. He was then produced before the local court on Wednesday and has been remanded in ATS custody for 10 days. "Suresh Pujari was arrested by ATS, Maharashtra at about 2 am today, when he arrived at New Delhi Airport. He was brought to Mumbai in a commercial flight at about 9 am today. It was a classified operation which went off smoothly," ATS said in a statement.

Sources said during the two previous attempts, in November, Pujari boarded the flight but faked illnesses - first time a heart attack and the second time he puked - forcing the airlines to de-board him. They added that Pujari took those steps as the Red Corner Notice issued against him in 2016 will expire on December 19, 2021, after which it would become difficult to arrest him. Pujari was also allegedly planning to seek asylum in other countries to evade arrest.

"Since he was delaying his deportation, the state ATS was roped in to bring him back," a source from the state government said.

ATS's secret operation

A source said the state ATS sent a team of six officers led by an SP-rank officer to conduct a secret operation and foil Pujari's tactics to delay his deportation. The team stayed there for a few days and made arrangements. The team took medical experts including a doctor and nurse from the Philippines to ensure Pujari could not use the same modus to get de-boarded.

"It was a secret operation and was successfully executed," state ATS chief Vineet Agrawal told mid-day.

Who is Pujari

Pujari, a foot soldier of gangster Ravi Pujari, was on the run since 2007 and has at least 24 cases against him, of which 14 are with the Mumbai Crime Branch, for murder, attempt to murder and extortion.

A case of extortion was registered against him with the Thane Police in July this year for allegedly threatening Rohit Jethani, a businessman. The case was later transferred to the Maharashtra ATS on December 11.

However, it was with the help of the Mumbai Crime Branch's Anti-Extortion Cell that Pujari was tracked to the Philippines after seven years.

The Crime Branch had earlier tracked him to Baroda in 2013 after cops found out that a person named Satish Shekhar Pai visited Pujari's son. Working on this tip-off, cops found out Pujari had changed his identity and was going by the name Satish Pai. But, he managed to evade arrest and escaped at that time.

AEC officers while probing further found some financial details in one suspected account on which money was sent from the Philippines. The crime branch found that one of the accounts belonged to a woman, allegedly Pujari's girlfriend. Following this, the Crime Branch alerted the Philippines authorities with the help of the Indian Embassy and requested them not to not renew his passport which expired in 2019.