Aryan Khan case: Pune police arrest Kiran Gosavi

Gosavi on Thursday after his arrest

More than three weeks after he posted a selfie with Aryan Khan and soon became the target of the Maharashtra police, absconding panch witness Kiran Gosavi was arrested by Pune cops on Thursday. On the run, Gosavi had been to Lucknow, Hyderabad, Fatehpur Sikri, Jalgaon, Panvel, Mumbai and Lonavala since October 3, when Aryan Khan was arrested, said the police. He was picked from a lodge in Katraj, Pune.

The Pune police said Gosavi was holed up in Katraj identifying himself as Sachin Patil. He had claimed that he worked for an NGO called Stop Crime. The Pune police are investigating how Gosavi paid for his food, drinks, travel and stay in hotels. The Pune police had booked Gosavi in a cheating case in 2019. While he had remained untraceable, his viral selfie with Aryan Khan and the subsequent war between state minority minister Nawab Malik and NCB Zonal Director Sameer Wankhede ensured that Maharashtra cops were hot on his heels. The Pune police then issued a lookout notice against him.

Another witness in the drug-bust case, Prabhakar Sail, has alleged that Gosavi had demanded a bribe of Rs 25 crore to let Aryan Khan walk away. To evade arrest, Gosavi kept moving from one city to another posing as an NGO worker. He also carried an identity card purportedly showing his association with the NGO. Police are not sure if there exists such an NGO.

During this time, Gosavi also spoke to the media. Three days ago, he had told mid-day that he would be surrendering before the Lucknow police since he had no trust in their Maharashtra counterparts. While Pune police visited Lucknow, they tracked him to down to their own city.

The police did not find any money on Gosavi. "We are trying to find out how he managed his expenses in so many cities all these days. Who paid for his travel, hotel stay and food?" asked a police officer who did not wish to be named. Officers said Gosavi stayed in Lucknow, Hyderabad, Fatehpur Sikri, Jalgaon, Panvel, Mumbai and Lonavala in the name of Sachin Patil.

Pune Commissioner of Police Amitabh Gupta told mid-day they will investigate how Gosavi paid the hotel bills. "We have arrested Kiran Gosavi in the cheating case and the court has remanded him in police custody for eight days, during which all aspects will be investigated." The top officer added, "We have not found anything from Gosavi at the time of his arrest. He has torn the ID card of the NGO that he had made."