Thane:
A man who allegedly shot dead his stepbrother with the help of a driver and fled with gold worth Rs 1.5 crore has been arrested in Thane district, police said on Monday. The duo, after stealing gold to make it look like a killing carried out for robbery, had thrown the body into Vashi Creek to destroy evidence, an official said.
“Rakesh Patil, son TMC corporate Manik Patil, went missing on September 20 and 3.7 kilograms of gold worth Rs 1,5 crore was also missing from the house, after which the former’s wife lodged a complaint with Kasarwadavali police,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police SS Burse. “When Rakesh’s father and mother, who were in the hospital, reached home, they found gold stolen and told police they suspected their missing son. On a tip-off, we detained their family driver Gaurav Singh who was seen riding the missing man’s scooter,” he said.
Singh told police Rakesh had been shot dead by the latter’s stepbrother Sachin Patil over a property dispute and the two had stolen gold from the house to make it look like a robbery, the official said. “They threw the body in Vashi Creek. Singh was arrested on September 23 and Patil was held after a detailed hunt as he did not use a mobile phone and therefore was managing to dodge technical surveillance,” senior inspector Kishore Khairnar of Kasarwadavali police station said.
“Sachin was held on September 26 on a tip-off that he would be visiting Ulve. He told us he lived with his father all this while and got worried after the latter brought Rakesh to stay in the house as well. Sachin thought he would lose his share of the property to Rakesh,” Khairnar said. Sachin is the son of the corporation’s third wife from an earlier marriage, police said.
“We have recovered 3.7 kilograms of gold and the firearm used in the crime. Sachin had promised Singh Rs 2 lakh for the hit,” he added.
