Sandalwood gangs to be slapped with MCOCA: CP

Nagpur: City police chief (CP) Amitesh Kumar, who is supervising the Raj Bhavan sandalwood tree theft case, has started paperwork to slap the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) on the gangs behind these incidents, which had occurred in the past too.

On June 20, Raj Bhavan staff found five sandalwood trees chopped off from the trunk. Upon learning about the incident, cops registered an offence at Sadar police station.

Kumar engaged a special team of crime branch for a parallel investigation along with the squad of Sadar police station. While the crime branch’s probe is monitored by DCP Chinmay Pandit and additional CP Navinchandra Reddy, zonal DCP Sandeep Pakhale is spearheading the police station action.

An internal security audit of Raj Bhavan was jointly completed after the theft incident came to fore. Attempts are being made to ensure the CCTV cameras, some of which had developed technical snags, work properly.

It’s learnt that Kumar has ordered the crime branch’s compilation and data analysis team of modus operandi branch to assemble the criminal history records and status of court cases against the thieves and gangs who stole the sandalwood trees.

Kumar said attempts are underway to round up various sandalwood thieves and gangs as per their available records in the police department, and also through manual and technical evidence. “We are trying to zero in on the sandalwood gangs, whose locations and hideouts are being tracked. Some clues are being worked out,” said the top cop.

The CP added, “Some of the gangs’ modus operandi are being analysed now. As we have busted some major gangs in the past, their locations are being traced now. Thieves who are part of such syndicates and have networks to sell them will get involved in these types of thefts.”

Sources also said city police’s special teams are planning raids in the neighbouring states, where the sandalwood gangs generally dispose of their booty. Some sandalwood traders are also under the police scanner now, especially the ones who are known to purchase stolen trees from the gangs.

The city has witnessed several sandalwood tree thefts in the past from various premises, including the high court and the official bungalow of a senior police officer. Nagpur Municipal Corporation had conducted a survey of the sandalwood trees, following which police stepped up its patrolling at such places in the past.


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