Actor Chrisann Pereira, held in Sharjah in drugs case, returns to Mumbai after release
Mumbai (PTI): Actor Chrisann Pereira, who was released by Sharjah authorities after being implicated in a drugs case, has returned to Mumbai, an official said on Thursday.
She will meet Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar and other senior police officials later in the day, he said.
Pereira (27), who acted in Mahesh Bhatt-directed Bollywood movie "Sadak 2", was apprehended at the Sharjah airport on April 1 after drugs were found inside a memento which some persons had asked her to hand over to someone in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
She spent nearly a month in a prison in Sharjah.
During the probe into the case, it came to light she was framed by some persons, later arrested by the Mumbai crime branch, the official said.
The authorities in Sharjah had released her after the probe into the case, but she could not return here immediately due to some legal formalities.
After completion of the legal formalities, authorities in the UAE allowed the actor to leave for India.
Accordingly, the actor has returned to Mumbai, the official said.
After Pereira's arrest in the UAE, two of the accused, Anthony Paul and his friend Rajesh alias Ravi Bobhate, allegedly demanded Rs 80 lakh from her mother to arrange for her release.
The actor was released after the Mumbai Police sent case-related documents to authorities in the UAE.
The Mumbai Police in June filed a chargesheet against Paul, Bobhate and another person for allegedly framing Pereira in the drugs case.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Brazil's Ancelotti raises doubts about whether Neymar will reach the 2026 World Cup
Sao Paulo (AP): Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti raised doubts about whether Neymar will be in his squad for the 2026 World Cup. The Italian has yet to pick the former captain since he took over in May.
“If Neymar deserves to be (in the squad), if he is, well, better than others, he will play in the World Cup and that's it. (But) I don't have debts to anyone,” Ancelotti said at a press conference in Washington on Friday following the draw.
Brazil is in Group C with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland.
“If we speak about Neymar, we have to speak about other players,” Ancelotti added. “We have to think about Brazil with or without Neymar, with or without other players. Our final list we will make after the FIFA fixtures in March.”
The 33-year-old Neymar has never fully recovered from a torn ACL in October 2023 during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. But he's been key for Santos in its fight to avoid relegation in the Brazilian championship.
On Wednesday, he scored a hat trick for Santos despite a muscular injury. He is expected to play again on Sunday against Cruzeiro.
Ancelotti said Brazil does not have a “referential player” at the moment, a tag for the most valuable player that Neymar has mainly worn since the 2014 home World Cup.
“We have one of the world's best goalkeepers, some of the best defenders, top midfielders and some players up front. I don't want players who want to be the best in the world, I want players who want to win the World Cup,” Ancelotti said.
Asked about his team's group, Ancelotti said Brazil can top it.
“We can win all three matches, our idea is very clear. We need to be competitive during the entire World Cup. Our goal is to play in the final and for that to happen you need to face very strong teams anyway.”
Brazil won the last of its five World Cup trophies in 2002.
_vb_69.jpeg)
