Johannesburg: West Indian international cricketer Fabian Allen faced a distressing incident of gunpoint mugging outside the team hotel in Johannesburg. The 28-year-old all-rounder, representing the Paarl Royals franchise in the SA20 league, was targeted by assailants armed with a gun.

The incident took place near the renowned Sandton Sun Hotel in the early hours of January 25, raising concerns about player safety in the SA20 league. The perpetrators forcibly took Allen's phone, along with personal belongings, including a bag.

Multiple sources connected to the Paarl Royals team, SA20, and Cricket West Indies (CWI) confirmed the mugging. A CWI source reassured that Allen is unharmed, and a representative from the West Indies board expressed relief after establishing contact with the player.

"Our head coach Andre Coley, also hailing from Jamaica, reached out to Fabian. Contact was successfully established through Obed McCoy (another West Indies international). He is fine. CSA (Cricket South Africa) and his team, Paarl Royals, could share more details if there are any," stated a top CWI official.

This incident follows a recent security-related episode involving SA20 players, marking the second season of the league, currently at the play-offs stage. Paarl Royals, owning the Rajasthan Royals side in the Indian Premier League (IPL), issued a statement ensuring Allen's safety.

"Following the incident, the player was provided with the necessary support by the franchise and the league, and was keen to continue his participation at the SA20, and has since been available for selection (twice also featuring in the playing XI for the Royals)," the statement said.

The franchise added that Allen is safe, enjoying his time at the SA20, and preparing for the all-important Eliminator on Wednesday. The Paarl Royals franchise emphasized its commitment to player safety and well-being, collaborating with the league for both security measures and personal time.

Source: Cricbuzz

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Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.

The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.

The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.

Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.

"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.

Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.

“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.

Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.

"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.

The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.

Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.

"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.

The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.

Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.