PANAJI
The Panaji Police busted a local gang involved in systematically swapping liquor bottles, a crime that occurred from October 2022 until February 9, 2023, at a wine store in Panaji.
Nabokumar Mahal, an employee at the wine store, orchestrated the swap by replacing Black Label, Red Label, and Jagermeister bottles with boxes of Royal Challenge, Royal Stag, and McDowell’s, respectively.
The Panaji Police informed that the accused’s modus operandi was such that Saurabh Narulkar, owner of Barrel House Wine Store in St Inez, and Chitta Jenna, employed at the Wine Store, knowingly would purchase the swapped boxes, which ultimately put M/s Casa Barreto into a loss of Rs 40 lakh.
While Chitta and Saurabh were arrested and released on bail, Mahal, who had absconded, was later apprehended from his native place and subsequently arrested.
The FIR is registered under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 408 (criminal breach of trust by a clerk or servant), 420 (cheating), and 34 (common intention) of the IPC.
