Maharashtra: Pune crime branch arrests two accomplices in drug lord’s escape

Lalit Patil, the drug lord who escaped from Sassoon hospital

The Pune Crime Branch arrested two alleged individuals for helping alleged drug kingpin Lalit Patil get in touch with another accused, Bhushan Patil.Mois Shaikh, 30, and Sudhakar Ingale, 44, were arrested on November 28. Shaikh served as a jail police officer in ward 16 at Sassoon hospital on behalf of Yerawada, where the drug lord was admitted.

"We discovered Shaikh was in constant contact with Bhushan through Lalit Patil's girlfriend, Pradnya Kamble. We suspect Shaikh lent his phone to Patil to aid in his prison escape," said a police officer.

Sudhakar Ingale, a counsellor at Yerwada prison, was also arrested. "We're probing their involvement in Lalit Patil's escape from the hospital. Further interrogation will reveal more," said a police officer. Earlier, Mahindra Shevte, a Sassoon hospital staffer, was arrested for allegedly assisting Patil at the hospital, and arranging certain amenities.

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Since Lalit Patil's arrest, Sassoon hospital's medical and non-medical staff have been under Pune police scrutiny. "We have arrested the counsellor of the Yerwada jail as we found transactions between Abhishek Balkwade and Sudhakar Ingale," said a police officer.