Fugitive gangster brought home from Bangkok

Shetty,a former aide of gangster Chhota Rajan,was wanted in connection with dozens of serious offences across the country,including the murders of advocate Shahid Azmi and close Rajan aide Farid Tanasha in Mumbai. According to the Crime Branch,Shetty has now also revealed that he carried out the murder of Bharat Nepali,another former Rajan gang member and Shetty’s own business partner,in Pattaya in 2010.

“We have successfully conducted an international operation and brought back Shetty to face justice in Mumbai. He was brought by officers of the Anti-Extortion Cell early this morning from Bangkok,where he had been seeking refuge. He is one of the most dreaded and wanted criminals in the country. The Crime Branch had been planning and conducting the operation for almost six months,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Himanshu Roy.

Asked about the details on how the operation was carried out,Roy said Shetty had been deported and not extradited,but was unwilling to elaborate.

“It would not be right to give out operational details as that would alert other criminals who are currently seeking refuge outside the country. We co-ordinated with the Thai Police and he has been deported. All legal procedures have been followed,” said Roy.

Police said Shetty is wanted in 12 cases in Mumbai. He has been arrested for travelling on a fake Indian passport under the name Nicholas Sharma,and remanded in police custody till August 17. The Crime Branch will book him in the other cases subsequently.

“Along with gangsters Vijay Shetty and Bharat Nepali,he was involved in various extortion,murder and attempt to murder cases across the country. The murder of advocate Shahid Azmi on February 11,2010 was planned and executed by the trio. They also carried out the murder of Farid Tanasha on June 2,2010. Santosh Shetty today also revealed that he killed Bharat Nepali himself in November 2010 by calling him to a beach bungalow in Pattaya,before shooting him with a silenced revolver and dumping his body in the sea,” said Roy.

Shetty has also allegedly told police that he murdered Nepali as the latter had approached him with a plan to kill their partner Vijay Shetty,so that they could split his share of the profits. This reportedly did not go down well with Shetty.

“Shetty,along with his associate Bhadresh Shah,was also involved in luring businessmen to Bangkok by offering large loans,before kidnapping them and demanding ransom. Cases have been registered in Rajasthan and Mumbai. Shah was arrested by the Crime Branch in a fake passport case in February 2011. In April 2011,Shetty planned an attack on Faizal Khan,an accused in the Mulund bomb blast case,which was foiled by us,” said Roy.