A 28-year-old cashier was arrested, and four women were rescued after Dahisar police raided a spa in Borivli East, Mumbai, where women were allegedly being forced into prostitution under the guise of providing body-to-body massages, police said.
The raid was conducted at Coral Spa, located at Shop No 109 on the first floor of DGS Sheetal Regalia in Nancy Colony on Monday around 7.20 pm.
According to the police, the arrested accused, identified as Ankit Sanjaykumar Chaubey, allegedly worked with wanted accused Tushar Wadekar to facilitate the illegal activity at the spa. Police alleged that the women were made to engage in obscene acts and were allegedly encouraged to provide body-to-body massages to customers.
A case was registered against Chaubey and Wadekar on a complaint by police constable More under Section 296 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act. The case has been registered as Crime No. 1395/2026.
Cash, phone and electronic equipment seized
Police seized Rs 21,000 in cash, comprising 42 notes of Rs 500, from the premises. A mobile phone, a payment machine and a notebook containing entries related to services and payments were also seized.
The police also seized a network video recorder, a white-coloured HEX ID unit and two routers.
Accused arrested, another wanted
Chaubey, 28, was arrested at 6.13 am on Tuesday, according to the police. Wadekar remains wanted in the case.
The operation was conducted under the guidance of Additional Commissioner of Police Shashikumar Meena, Deputy Commissioner of Police Gajanan Shivling Rajmane, Assistant Commissioner of Police Jayraj Ranavare and senior officers of Dahisar police station.
The police team included Assistant Police Inspector Nilesh Shivaji Salunke, Woman Assistant Police Inspector Dipali Prabhakar Kharat, Assistant Police Sub-Inspector Sachin Vasant Shinde and other personnel.
Navi Mumbai Police bust prostitution racket at Belapur spa, rescue five women
In a similar incident that came to light recently, the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) of the Navi Mumbai Police's Crime Branch busted an alleged prostitution racket operating under the guise of a massage parlour and a spa in CBD Belapur, rescuing five women and arresting a 24-year-old spa manager.
The action was taken on the afternoon of September 24 following specific information about alleged prostitution activities at the premises.
According to the police, Senior Police Inspector Gajanan Kadam of AHTU received information that the female manager of the spa was allegedly soliciting customers and forcing women working as masseuses into prostitution.
After verifying the information, the police arranged for an independent witness and sent a decoy customer to the spa at around 4.02 pm the same day.
The undercover operation allegedly confirmed the information received by the police. After the decoy customer gave the pre-arranged signal, the police team raided the premises.
Five women were rescued from the spa. Police said the women had allegedly been kept there for prostitution under the guise of providing massage services.
The police arrested a 24-year-old spa manager during the raid.
According to the police, he allegedly accepted cash from the decoy customer after offering one of the women for prostitution.
The investigation also identified three other people who have been named as wanted accused in the case.
Police allege that the accused had conspired to recruit women under the pretext of offering employment as massage therapists and subsequently pushed them into prostitution for financial gain.
A case has been registered at CBD Belapur Police Station under Sections 143(3) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act (PITA).
The accused was produced before a local court, which remanded her to police custody until September 28.
Police said further investigation is underway to trace the three wanted accused and establish the full extent of the alleged racket.
The operation was conducted under the supervision of Assistant Commissioner of Police (AHTU) Shaileshkumar Ainchwar, Senior Inspector Gajanan Kadam, Inspector Yogesh Deshmukh and other Crime Branch personnel.
The action was taken following directions from Navi Mumbai Police Commissioner Milind Bharambe, Joint Commissioner Deepak Sakore and Additional Commissioner (Crime) Pramod Shewale to take action against illegal activities.
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