The social security cell (SSC) of the city crime branch on Friday arrested a 30-year-old table tennis coach and two women for running a sex racket in posh Koregaon Park and Kalyaninagar areas in the city.
The arrested suspects have been identified as Santosh Dhanraj Lalwani, 30, of Raheja Garden in Wanavdi; Ashwini Suryakant Mane, 21, of Vishrantwadi and Komal Yogesh Bansode, 26, of Tadiwala Road.
Acting on a tip-off received by head constable Ashok Takalkar, a team led by senior inspector Bhanupratap Barge, nabbed the trio while they were waiting for ‘clients’ on North Main Road on Friday evening.
Barge said, “We had sent a dummy customer who confirmed that a sex racket was being run. The accused were waiting in a Maruti Zen car (MH 12 YA 4548) when they were nabbed. Lalwani has told us that he has been running the racket for the past six years.
“The customers were charged Rs3,000 for the ‘services’ and Lalwani used to keep Rs1,000 with him. They relied entirely on word-of-mouth publicity. Lalwani used to take the girls to hotels to meet clients. He has told us that around 10 women work with him.”
Barge added, “Lalwani lives in a plush society with his wife. He had told his wife that he worked in an insurance company. His wife belongs to a well-to-do family and was not aware of his activities. She came to know about it after she was summoned by the SSC for interrogation,” he said.
On Saturday, the court remanded the accused in police custody till January 16.
The Pune District Table Tennis Association told DNA that Lalwani was not a member of the association and that they did not know him.
Bangladeshis held for illegal stay
The Faraskhana police on Friday arrested two Bangladeshi residents for staying in Pune illegally without passports and visas forfour months.
The illegal migrants, Imam Hazarat Morol, 23, and Momin Nisar Deval, 27, were arrested in Hadapsar.
A court remanded them in police custody till January 17.
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