04 November,2016 08:25 AM IST | | Suraj Ojha
The murder accused had escaped from his village in West Bengal after killing cousin to avenge brother’s murder; was working in a paint manufacturing company
Shahid Mandal was arrested on October 29
Shahid Mandal had escaped from his village in West Bengal after killing his brother's murderer to avenge his death, but he could only run for so long. The 22-year-old murder accused was caught miles away from home in Roha, almost a month after the murder.
The city crime branch arrested Shahid in Raigad on October 29. Cops said that Shahid shot his cousin Umar Mandal with a sten gun to avenge the death of his brother who was killed by the latter in a bomb blast earlier in October. After killing Umar, Shahid was allegedly living with a fake identity.
Kill before Diwali
"Shahid had challenged Umar that he would kill him before Diwali irrespective of whatever protection he takes from cops. Umar took his threats lightly and the accused succeeded in killing him," said a crime branch officer. Umar killed Shahid's brother on October 2 over a property dispute by throwing a crude bomb at him. The property dispute has been a bone of contention in the family for a long time.
Both murder cases were registered at Donkul police station. The local cops sensed that Shahid must have fled to Mumbai. On the same hunch, they contacted the Mumbai crime branch, who started looking for him. Later, sources informed them that he is working at a Roha-based paint manufacturing company under a fake identity.
Crime branch keeps eye
The crime branch officials kept an eye on him. They collected his pictures and his Call Data Records because he was in touch with people from his village. They received details about him through the Donkul police.
Later, the cops took a list of employees working at the company and details of new joinees and where they've come from. Later, the officers got to know that Shahid was one of the new hires that belongs to the same area in West Bengal where the murder occurred. After investigating and verifying information for eight days, the crime branch got to know that Shahid is the murderer they were hunting for. A team of three to four officers then arrested him.
Others still on the run
After the murder of his brother, Shahid made a four-person gang to kill Umar. While Shahid has been arrested, another accused was held from Bengal while two others are still on the run.
