Police ASI booked on allegations of theft

Aurangabad: A 55-year-old assistant sub-inspector of Aurangabad city police has been booked on the charges of cheating and criminal breach of trust after he allegedly took a gold necklace weighing about 160gram from a pilgrim at Mumbai International Airport and later refused to return by falsely claiming that the customs department officials have seized it.
Authorities said after carrying out a preliminary probe, the offence against the suspect was finally registered on Saturday at the Satara area police station. Tour operator Rafiq Khan, in his complaint, stated that the suspect ASI and his wife were part of the group of pilgrims that had been for Umrah, a mini-pilgrimage to Mecca and Madina in Saudi Arabia on October 30.
On the way back, Rafiq Khan asked his manager Mujahid to purchase a gold chain worth Rs 6.7 lakh and bring it to India. To ensure the chain reaches India safely, the manager was asked to hand it over to another pilgrim Kazi Khaliluddin. After the group landed at Mumbai international airport, the suspect asked Kazi to hand over the gold chain to him, citing that the customs department officials would seize the gold chain and book them for gold smuggling. After returning to Aurangabad, Khan sought the gold chain from the suspect, but he refused to return citing it was seized by custom officials.