Nigerian convicted for pelting stones at NCB team

A Nigerian national has been convicted for pelting stones at a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) team in Mumbai. He was sentenced to one year and four months, which he had already served. The convict, Obiroh Ekvelwar, was found in possession of drugs during the incident.

MUMBAI: The sessions court recently convicted a 29-year-old Nigerian national for pelting stones at a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) team, headed by its former zonal director Sameer Wankhede, when they went to arrest him and some others suspected to be involved in drug peddling in August 2021.

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The court, however, let off the convict, Obiroh Ekvelwar, with imprisonment of one year and four months that he had already served.

According to the prosecution case, NCB sepoy Shrikant Raut on August 12, 2021 had received information that a group of Nigerian nationals was selling drugs at Mankhurd. Accordingly, seniors in the agency were informed and a trap was laid.

At around 9:10pm, Wankhede along with 22 officials reached the spot at Tata Power House near Vashi railway track along Sion-Panvel Highway in Mankhurd. The team then noticed a group of five/six Nigerian nationals. As soon as the officials began to approach them, the group began to flee and then started pelting stones on the NCB officials. While Raut sustained injuries on his forehead, other officials were injured too.

The team, however, caught Ekvelwar and found drugs, including 5 grams of heroin, 306 gm of Mephedrone and 7.5 gm of cocaine, in his possession.

Ekvelwar was arrested and booked for possession of narcotics as well as for assaulting the NCB officials, but the case for alleged drug possession is still pending.

Public prosecutor Ranjana Budhwant examined seven witnesses, including Raut and other members of the team who were injured in the said incident, to prove the charge that the accused pelted stones at the team.

Contending that there was no conclusive, impeachable and inspiring evidence to prove the guilt of the accused, Ekvelwar’s lawyer Advaith Tamhankar pointed out that Raut could not confidently say that the stone that hit him was pelted by the arrested Nigerian national.

The court, however, said that the accused was caught at the spot and he was amongst the Nigerians nationals who had pelted stones at the NCB team and was thus a member of the unlawful assembly. “It is proved that at the time of the incident, officials being public servants were discharging their duty. The accused being a member of unlawful assembly assaulted and voluntarily caused them hurt to deter them from discharging duty as such public servants,” the court said while convicting Ekvelwar.