Mumbai: The Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) of Mumbai police on February 20 arrested absconding criminal Sameer Lakdawala, a cousin of fugitive gangster Ejaz Lakdawala, who once was a henchman for fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. He also worked in Chhota Rajan’s gang before branching out to form his own gang.
Sameer had been on the run since 2013 when he stopped attending court proceedings after being released on bail in an extortion case in 2012. A non-bailable warrant was issued against him in 2013.
As part of Mumbai police’s ongoing drive to apprehend wanted criminals, Sameer was arrested on February 20. On a tip-off, the cell laid a trap to arrest Sameer, but were shocked when he came face-to-face with the police. They found it hard to believe he was the gangster Sameer.
The last thing police expected was to see Sameer in a bad state. He was wearing torn and dirty clothes. Sameer was sitting on the road and begging. When police arrested and frisked him for suspicious items, he was penniless and had no cellphone.
Police said they found Sameer begging for survival.
According to police, further investigation revealed Sameer had not contacted any of his friends, partners or relatives over the last five years. “As soon as Sameer saw me and my team, he made no attempts to run, as he recognised me. I was the one who had arrested him in 2012.
He thanked us for arresting him and said now he would not have to beg for food. He was assured of safety and food in jail,” said Ajay Sawant, the AEC inspector. Sameer once worked for Ejaz Lakdawala and handled his extortion racket. Cases of extortion were registered against him in 2003 and 2012.
Later, Sameer had fled Mumbai and was assumed to have been leading a new and better life. However, his whereabouts were unknown. Later, police learnt Sameer had begun living as a fakir at the Ajmer Sharif dargah in Rajasthan. He had spent nearly five years there.
When he ran out of money, he was forced to return to Mumbai for his survival. A city of dreams is what Mumbai is known and the poor always find some samaritan. Police said Sameer told them they had come as good samaritans at a time he needed the most.