Former police officer Sachin Waze granted bail in Antilia bomb and murder case

A special National Investigation Agency court granted bail to former police officer Sachin Waze, who had been arrested in connection with the 2021 Antilia bomb scare and the murder of Thane-based auto parts dealer Mansudh Hiran. Judge Chakor Bawiskar required a personal bond of ₹1 lakh plus a matching surety, ordered Waze to surrender his passport and barred him from entering Mumbai, Thane, Raigad and Palghar districts except for trial attendance.

The case stems from three FIRs filed between February and March 2021 after a stolen Mahindra Scorpio was discovered parked outside Mukesh Ambani’s Antilia with 20 gelatin sticks and a threatening letter, and after Hiran vanished and was later found dead. Prosecutors claim Waze, eager to restore his reputation, plotted to plant explosives-laden vehicles in the upscale Malabar Hill area and contracted former encounter specialist Pradip Sharma to eliminate Hiran when the latter refused to assume blame. According to the NIA, police officer Sunil Mane lured Hiran from his home and handed him over to four contract killers supplied by Sharma, who then smothered him and dumped the body in a creek near Mumbra.