Price on fugitive’s head
MELBOURNE police have resorted to offering money for information on a killer driver believed to be hiding in India after politicians failed to press for his capture, the family of one of his victims says.
Puneet Puneet, a hospitality student from India, used a friend’s passport to fly back to his home country in 2009, skipping out on a sentencing hearing after pleading guilty to culpable driving.
He is now the subject of a $100,000 reward, which police hope will lead to his arrest.
Puneet, then a teenager, was drunk and driving at high speed when he killed Dean Hofstee, 19, and seriously injured Clancy Coker, 20, as they walked back to a hotel along City Rd.
Puneet is believed to be still hiding in India but his whereabouts are unknown.
Mr Hofstee’s parents say Australian politicians, including Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu and his predecessor John Brumby, have failed to press the issue during official visits to India.
‘‘They’ve certainly had the opportunities to broach the subject if they so chose. It would appear that they didn’t,’’ said Mr Hofstee’s mother, Fran Hofstee.
‘‘We do believe they’ve toed around the subject,’’ father Peter Hofstee said.
They are hoping the $100,000 reward, announced by Victoria Police yesterday, will finally bring their son’s killer to justice.
‘‘It puts such a large price on honesty,’’ Ms Hofstee said.
Police are confident the reward will flush out a witness who knows where Puneet is hiding.
‘‘It is certainly a lot of money to an Australian, and it’s an extraordinary amount of money to a person living in India,’’ Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Robert Hill said.
He said Australian Federal Police were working with local authorities in India to track down the fugitive.
‘‘It’s time now to ring authorities,’’ Mr Hill said.
This is the first time Victoria has offered money to solve a traffic-related case. tiphis
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