The alleged ₹400-crore cash heist and kidnapping case has been transferred to the Maharashtra State Criminal Investigation Department after an internal review flagged concerns over the earlier SIT probe by Nashik Rural Police, which had termed the case fabricated following a complaint at Ghoti Police Station.
In a significant development, the alleged Rs 400-crore cash-heist and linked kidnapping case has been officially transferred to the Maharashtra State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on February 23, with the agency set to conduct a fresh investigation into the matter, senior officials confirmed. Administrative formalities for reopening the probe have been completed and the CID is expected to begin its investigation shortly. The move potentially overturns earlier findings that had termed the case fabricated.
The case was earlier investigated by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Nashik Rural Police, which, after roughly 25 days of investigation, concluded that the alleged robbery, along with the linked kidnapping claim, was “fictitious”. On February 12, the SIT filed a closure report before the Igatpuri Judicial Magistrate First Class Court, citing Section 189 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), according to court records, stating that the central premise of the alleged crime appeared fabricated and recommending closure of the case.
Sources at the state police headquarters said that an internal review at the senior command level examined aspects of the earlier probe conducted by the SIT and flagged what officials described as procedural concerns. According to senior officers familiar with the review, the findings indicated that the SIT proceeded with the closure proposal despite adverse remarks recorded by the Assistant Public Prosecutor (APP) regarding the proposed invocation of Section 189 of the BNSS.
Sources added that the review raised red flags over the reported role of certain senior police officers in unofficial investigation-related activities linked to the case, questioned the unusually swift completion of the SIT probe within about 25 days, and scrutinised the grounds on which the arrested accused were allowed to walk free, citing absence of evidence.
The case surfaced after a Nashik-based businessman lodged a complaint at Ghoti Police Station alleging kidnapping, extortion and the disappearance of a large cash consignment purportedly worth around Rs 400 crore in demonetised Rs 2,000 notes. According to the complaint, the money was allegedly being transported from Karnataka to a Gujarat-based ashram in Ahmedabad for conversion into legal tender when the alleged heist took place on October 16 at Chorla Ghat along the Maharashtra–Karnataka border.
Given the scale of the alleged amount and the seriousness of the kidnapping claim, the probe was taken over by the SIT of Nashik Rural Police. During the investigation, officers examined call data records, vehicle routes, financial transactions and statements of persons allegedly connected with the transport and handling of the cash.
Sources said the internal review at the DGP office also examined complaints alleging that certain senior officials may have participated in parallel or unofficial inquiry-related activities connected to the case. These aspects, officials indicated, are also expected to be examined as part of the CID’s fresh investigation.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/400-crore-money-heist-case-transferred-to-cid-after-review-flags-concerns-over-sit-probe