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10-year-old girl rescued from prostitution racket in Navi Mumbai; mother, 70-year-old NRI held

MUMBAI: The Anti Human Trafficking Unit of Navi Mumbai police rescued a 10-year-girl from a prostitution racket and arrested her mother and a 70-year-old NRI in this connection, an official said on Saturday. The operation was carried out on the basis of a tip off received by AHTU senior inspector Prithviraj Ghorpade on October 30, he said. As per the tip off, a woman from Kopargaon in Kharghar was sending a young girl, approximately 10-12 years old, to a man in Taloja Phase 2 area for prostitution. Following a raid, the girl was rescued. We arrested Farooq Allauddin Sheikh (70), who lived there. He is originally a resident of London, the official said. Sheikh, despite knowing that the victim was a minor, made her drink alcohol and sexually assaulted her on several occasions, the official said. The victim's 30-year-old mother has also been arrested. Our probe has found Sheikh gave her Rs 2.5 lakh as well a monthly amount. A case was registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, he said. The two have been remanded in police custody till November 4, the Taloja police station official added.