Overview

• Fourteen of 15 accused were convicted by the ACB Special Court and given life terms, with advocate Jatin Dhiru Patel acquitted.
• Those sentenced include former BJP MLA Nalin Kotadiya, ex-Amreli SP Jagdish Patel, LCB inspector Anant Patel, nine police personnel, advocate Ketan Dhiru Patel and businessman Kirit Paladiya.
• The court found the group abducted trader Shailesh Bhatt in February 2018, confined him at a farmhouse and coerced the transfer of 200 bitcoins valued at about Rs 12 crore at the time.
• The judge cited abuse of office, imposed a Rs 25,000 fine on each convict under IPC and anti-corruption provisions, and issued perjury notices to 25 hostile witnesses.
• A lawyer for the convicted policemen said they will challenge the verdict in the Gujarat High Court within a week.