Pimpri-Chinchwad police have arrested 33 bookies for betting on the ongoing one-day international (ODI) series between India and England in the city. The accused bookies also had Rs 45 lakh which was confiscated by the police. Eight of the arrested bookies went to the Ghodeshwar hills and watched each other over of the match through binoculars. They started betting two to four seconds into the overs.
Wakad police raided three locations in the Pimpri-Chinchwad police commissioner (PCPC) and detained 33 bookies on betting charges. According to Wakad’s senior police inspector Vivek Mughalikar, all of the accused are staying near the MCA cricket stadium in Gahunje.
Inspector Mughalikar further said that Eight of them were apprehended in the Ghodeshwar hills, where it was discovered that they were using binoculars to put bets on each ball. The bookies were arrested by the Wakad police near the cricket stadium. The incident has been reported to the Dehu Road police station. The raid took place late Friday night. There was an assault on the police team during the raids. However, the police had gone ahead with their plans, avoiding any needless accidents. All of the bookies eventually surrendered.
Mughalikar has assured that the culprits will face severe consequences. Two of the major suspects have eluded detection, but they will be captured soon.
According to PCPC Commissioner of Police Krishna Prakash, three teams were formed under Mughalikar’s leadership. The Gahunje Stadium is hosting the India-England One-Day International series. The bookies came to the stadium and lived in highrise buildings nearby. In front of the stadium, the second team was concealed in a jungle hillside. Lemon Tree Hotels are where the rest of the bookies lived. From the Ghodeshwar hills, eight people were captured. Five of the accused were from Madhya Pradesh, thirteen from Haryana, eleven from Maharashtra, and one from each Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, and Portugal.
