Sachin Vaze's custody to be given to Mumbai Police for probe in Goregaon extortion case

Update: 

Sources have informed that Mumbai Police will take Sachin Vaze’s custody on November 1 following which he will be produced before the magistrate on November 2. Pradeep Sharma's interrogation by the Thane Police will take place to inside Taloja jail on November 1, 2, 8 and 9, sources added.

A Mumbai court has allowed the Mumbai Police to take custody of dismissed Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze to question him in a Goregaon extortion case. Notably, former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh has also been named as an accused in the Goregaon case. The Court has also allowed former cop Pradeep Sharma to be interrogated by the Thane Police in NIA custody for four days. 

In August, Mumbai's Goregaon Police had registered a case against Param Bir Singh, Sachin Vaze and some locals for extortion. A hotelier, identified as Bimal Agarwal, had alleged that the accused extorted him and threatened to file cases against his restaurant and Bar.

Agarwal had claimed that he had paid Rs 9 lakh in cash and two Samsung Fold-2 phones worth Rs 2,12,000 to then Mumbai CP Param Bir Singh through Sachin Vaze. The hotelier had also alleged that the two used to extort money from other restaurants and bookies in Mumbai.

Sachin Vaze's plea seeking house arrest dismissed

Sachin Vaze is currently in National Investigation Agency (NIA) custody for his role in the Antilia bomb scare case and Mansukh Hiren's death. 

Last month, an NIA court rejected Sachin Vaze's petition seeking to be kept under house arrest during the course of investigation in the Antilia case in which he has been accused of terrorism and murder. The sacked officer had filed a plea seeking a three-month house arrested for recovering from his 'heart' surgery. On September 13, Vaze had undergone a 'heart' bypass surgery following which he was shifted to Taloja jail.

On September 2, the NIA had filed a 10,000-page chargesheet in two cases in which Vaze and encounter specialist Pradeep Shara were charged with murder. More than 200 witnesses have recorded their statements in the case.