Pune: The crime branch team has arrested Balkrishna alias Pandya Laxman Mohite (40), a close associate of the notorious gangster Gaja Marne, from Sangli. Marne, who was recently transferred from Yerwada Jail to Sangli Jail for security reasons, is currently under investigation along with his associates in connection with an attack on a computer engineer in Kothrud.
During Marne’s transfer, it was revealed that his associates stopped at a roadside dhaba, where they provided him with mutton biryani, clothes, and money. The crime branch, which was tracking Marne’s associates closely, identified that Satish Shilimkar, Vishal Dhumal, and Balkrishna Mohite met Marne during the stop. A case under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) has now been registered against Marne and these associates.
Marne was being escorted by an Assistant Police Inspector and four personnel in a police van. Meanwhile, his associates followed in a separate car, delivering the food and other items during the stop. Following this discovery, crime branch teams, under the supervision of Additional Police Commissioner Shailesh Balkawade, Deputy Commissioner Nikhil Pingale, and Assistant Commissioner Ganesh Ingle, swiftly acted to arrest Mohite from Sangli. The operation was executed by inspectors Pratap Mankar and Assistant Inspectors Ashish Kawthekar, Ujjwal Mokashi, Kumbar, and their team.
After his arrest, Mohite was produced before the special MCOCA court, where police advocate Pramod Bombatkar successfully argued for five days of police custody to facilitate further investigation. The court granted the custody request on Wednesday.
The investigation continues as the crime branch intensifies efforts to dismantle Marne’s network.
