Navi Mumbai: 6th Accused Arrested In Nerul Double Murder Case After Month-Long Chase

The central unit of Navi Mumbai Crime Branch has arrested the sixth and the final accused in the missing turned double murder of land dealers of Nerul. The accused identified as Rehan Khan (34), was arrested and handed over to Nerul police, last week by the team of senior police inspector Sunil Shinde, central unit, crime branch. After a month long chase, Khan who was continuously travelling and changing locations, was finally nabbed from Bhiwandi.

Aamir Khanzada (42) and his friend cum business partner Sumit Jain (39) had gone missing on the night of August 21 about which their respective families in Nerul has lodged a missing persons complaint with Nerul police. The missing person was suspected to be a murder case after the police found the abandoned car of Khanzada at Khalapur, off expressway road, with gun shot marks. It was soon confirmed to be a murder case after the body of Jain was found in the bushes of Gagode village in  Pen Taluka of Raigad district on August 23. On August 27, decomposed body of Khanzada was found in the forest area of Karnala.

According to police, three teams of police were deployed in Hyderabad, Solapur and Pune consistently tracking the movement of the accused. "As soon as his location was found in Mumbai area, we laid a trap and nabbed him from Bhiwandi," said a police officer.

In the case, it was found that the deceased Jain himself was the mastermind of the crime and had shot himself on leg to show that he took was attacked by unidentified accused while Khanzada was killed. But in a fight over payment with the assailants, Khan and Raja Madhu Mudaliyar  (38), they killed him.

The five accused who were arrested initially, were identified as Vithal Baban Nakade (43), Andry Rajan Cruz (39), Virendra alias Goriya Bharat Kadam (24), Ankush alias Ankya Prakash Sitapure (35) and Mudaliyar.

A knife and a gun used in the murder was found in his possession with Khan. One more gun was used but was thrown enroute following the murder which is yet to be recovered. Khan had a total of three murder cases registered against him.