Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Live
Two more arrested in jeweller’s murder
THANE: The Naupada police have made two more arrests in the murder of the Thane-based jeweller, Bharat Jain. The main accused used to work as a watchman in Jain’s society and was aware of his daily routine and hatched the plot to rob him along with the other accused, the police said.
The two had strangled Jain in a cab and disposed of his body in the Kalwa creek.
The Naupada police had, last week, arrested Subhash Surve (39) and Balwant Cholekar (36) in connection with the offence.
According to the Naupada police, two more accused, identified as Atul Mishra (25) and Nilesh Bhoir (35), were arrested on Wednesday night. The police said that Mishra used to work as a security guard at Jain’s society around two-and-a-half years ago and was aware of his daily routine. Using this knowledge, Bhoir allegedly hatched the murder plot along with Mishra.
“The duo intercepted Jain as he was walking home from his jewellery store at 10.30pm on August 14 and made him get into the cab that was being driven by Surve. They strangled him inside the cab and disposed of his body in the Kalwa creek in the early hours of August 15,” DCP (Zone I), Avinash Ambure, said.
Police inspector, Ravindra Kshirsagar, Naupada police station, said, “After the murder was committed, Mishra and Bhoir went to Jain’s jewellery store and stole silver jewellery worth around ₹1.25 lakh using the key to his store that they had forcibly taken from him. They then went to Cholekar’s residence in Mharalgaon, Kalyan and stayed there overnight. They then left the stolen valuables at his place and left the city.”
The duo was picked up in Varanasi and brought to Mumbai on Wednesday, and the police have recovered a country-made pistol, a country-made revolver and one live round from them while the silver jewellery stolen from Jain’s story was recovered from Cholekar’s possession last week.
The accused have been charged with kidnapping, murder and destruction of evidence.