The Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) of the Mumbai Police’s crime branch has arrested gangster Prasad Pujari, alias Subhash Vitthal, in connection with a 2023 case where he allegedly threatened Shiv Sena leader Chandrashekhar Jadhav multiple times. Pujari, deported from China on March 22, 2024, had been on the run for two decades while operating from abroad.
Pujari is accused of calling Jadhav repeatedly from Hong Kong between 2022 and 2023, demanding a no objection certificate (NOC) for his mother’s bail in an attempted murder case. He allegedly threatened dire consequences if Jadhav refused. Pujari’s mother, cousin and six others were arrested in 2020 after his shooter fired at Jadhav, injuring his hand. The case was registered under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
Jadhav had recorded some of Pujari’s calls and submitted them to the AEC, leading to an investigation. A case was officially registered against Pujari in March 2023. Upon his recent arrest, police collected his voice samples for forensic verification. He has been remanded in police custody until March 10.
Pujari has an extensive criminal record, with 11 cases of murder, attempted murder, and extortion registered against him at Vikhroli, Ghatkopar, LT Marg police stations, and the AEC. He previously spent two-and-a-half years in jail for an attempted murder case but was acquitted in 2005 due to insufficient evidence.
The December 2020 attack on Jadhav occurred near a Sai Baba temple in Vikhroli East, where shooters Sagar Mishra and Shetty ambushed him. While Mishra was caught by Jadhav’s son and bystanders, Shetty fled but was later identified through CCTV footage. During the investigation, police arrested Pujari’s cousin, Sukesh Kumar, from Mangalore and his mother, Indira, from Mira Road for allegedly financing his extortion racket. Authorities also discovered that Indira had traveled to China and Hong Kong five times between 2009 and 2016 to meet her son.
Pujari, originally from Tagore Nagar, Vikhroli, was once associated with gangster Pillai’s network. Seeking to expand his operations, he moved to China in 2005 on a student visa, reportedly to study Chinese language and mass communication. However, he continued running his criminal activities from abroad. With his arrest, authorities are now investigating his international connections and criminal network in Mumbai.
