Author: Dominique Mosbergen / Source: HuffPost
Bollywood superstar Salman Khan was sentenced Thursday to five years in prison for poaching a protected species of Indian antelope — marking a dramatic development in a highly publicized case that has spanned almost 20 years.
Khan, among the most recognizable Bollywood film stars and one of the world’s highest-paid actors, was first arrested in 1998 after he was accused of illegally hunting two blackbucks while filming in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. He was convicted of the crime and sentenced to a five-year jail term in 2006. A high court suspended his sentence a week later and eventually acquitted the actor of all charges.
In 2016, however, the Rajasthan government appealed the acquittal. The case then languished in court again until March, when the most recent trial began.
Khan, who has denied the poaching allegations, spent a night in Jodhpur Central Jail on Thursday, reported Inda’s NDTV. Khan’s attorney said the high court would be hearing the 52-year-old actor’s bail request on Friday morning.
Khan would be appealing the decision, the attorney added, noting that the verdict had come as a “surprise.”
Vikram Singh, a police officer at the Jodhpur jail, told NDTV that Khan had been provided with “four blankets” and would be sleeping on the floor during his time at the prison.
Indian media outlets shared photographs of Khan being booked into the jail.
Khan, described as one of Bollywood’s most notorious “bad boys,” is no stranger to legal troubles.
In 2015, he was sentenced to five years in prison for killing a homeless man and injuring four other people in a hit-and-run accident in Mumbai. He was immediately granted bail and served no time behind bars before a high court…
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