Sachin Waze told bar owners money would go to ‘No. 1': ED

Mumbai: In his statement to the ED, dismissed cop Sachin Waze said he had collected Rs 4.7 crore between December 2020 and February 2021 (during the period the government had relaxed Covid lockdown conditions, allowing bars to operate), and handed over the money to former home minister Anil Deshmukh’s PA Kundan Shinde in two instalments.

- Vijay V Singh

The ED’s remand application has mentioned diversion of funds collected from the bar owners by Waze into the account of Shri Sai Shikshan Sanstha through a Delhi-based hawala operator. Deshmukh is the president of the trust and his sons, Salil and Hrishikesh, trustees.

The ED has recorded statements of prominent bar owners in the city who had allegedly collected money from other bar owners known to them for the smooth functioning of their business. They said in December, 60 orchestra bar owners paid Rs 40 lakh to Waze as “good luck” money and then between January and February over 1,700 bar owners had collectively contributed Rs 4.3 crore for Waze, who handed over the collection to Deshmukh’s staff.

Waze had told the bar owners the collected money will go to “Number 1” and the crime branch and social service branch of Mumbai police, the remand application said.