Gangster calls Navi Mumbai builder, demands Rs2 crore

Pujari had called the developer three times within the span of a few days, but demanded the money only on the third occasion on Saturday.

The Nerul police station filed a complaint against the gangster, Ravi Pujari, after he allegedly threatened a Navi Mumbai builder and demanded ₹2 crore extortion money from him. The case has now been transferred to the anti-extortion cell of the Navi Mumbai crime branch.

Gangster Ravi Pujari (HT file)

According to the police, Pujari had called the developer three times within the span of a few days, but demanded the money only on the third occasion on Saturday. “The gangster threatened the complainant with dire consequences if he didn’t pay the amount,” said a police source.

Tushar Doshi, deputy commissioner of police (crime), said, “Sometimes other criminals demand money from the businessmen and developers while impersonating gangsters. In this case, however, prima facie it appears that Ravi Pujari himself had called the complainant.”

“Based on the caller’s phone number, we can say that the call was made from Malaysia. However, it was a voice over internet protocol (VOIP) call and location of the caller can be manipulated in such calls. Thus, we are not sure which country the gangster made the call from. We are examining the caller’s voice and doing a comparative study by taking other voice samples of the gangster,” Doshi said.

In March, the Mumbai crime branch had initiated an investigation into the complaint of a Vakola-based developer, who also received extortion calls from Pujari. The gangster allegedly threatened to kill the developer if he did not pay ₹10-12 crore to settle a property dispute with another businessman.

“The gangster made phone calls to the developer using a mobile application that makes calls look like VOIP calls, even when they actually aren’t,” said a senior Mumbai crime branch officer.

Cops are questioning the person with whom the complainant was involved in a property dispute, to ascertain if he had roped in the gangster to solve his property dispute.