Mumbai: Man who killed 70-year-old Bhandup resident in her house, nabbed

Ratanben Jain

The Mumbai Police has finally managed to nab the killers of a 70-year-old Bhandup resident. The woman was killed in April by an unknown person who stole jewellery from her body and house. The investigation, which went on for 30 days, hadn't produced a single clue. But, the police has finally managed to find the culprits.

On April 15, Ratanben Jain was found murdered in her home at Fugawala Compound, where she lived alone. Jain's throat was slit and jewellery from her body worth Rs 3.50 lakh was stolen. As per Jain's daughter's complaint, an offence registered against unknown persons under IPC section 302 (murder), 397, 394 and 452. There were absolutely no clues about the incident. A team of officers from Zone 7 were handed over the investigation.

Also Read: 26-year-old man arrested for raping minor girl near Mumbai

During primary investigations, it was found that Jain was living alone at her home since 1993. She used to lend small amounts to people in the neighbourhood, and also sold khakra, which increased the radius of the investigation. Cops interrogated 250 families, and 30 close relatives, among others. The police also declared a prize money of Rs 51,000 to anyone who shared information related to the case. "We had tried everything possible to crack the case, but we were not getting any clues, and then we found out that one person from the neighbourhood went missing four days after the murder. When he was brought in for questioning, his answers were vague," an officer added.

Cops started digging for information about the suspected person, Imran Munne Malik, 24, and found that a case of cheating had been registered against him by his female friend. She had alleged that he cheated her for Rs 8 lakh. "When we called the lady in question for interrogation, the accused fled town," said DCP (Zone 7) Prashant Kadam. "Our team brought him to Bhandup police station and during the inquiry, he confessed to the crime."

The lady friend was identified as Deepali Raut, 36. Malik was working with a hair salon but currently doing odd jobs, while Raut was working as a data entry operator in a private hospital. Raut had lent Malik R8 lakh, but he never returned it, and she had been pressurising him for it. "Imran knew Ratanben as she used to collect rent from him for his house, for her friend living in Thane. He knew she lived alone and decided to kill her and get easy money without any suspicion. On April 14, Imran went to Ratanben's home and slashed her throat covering her mouth, preventing her from screaming. He then took all the jewellery from her body and house, and ran away," the officer added.