In an incident indicative of the state of police station lock-ups in Palghar district, an accused arrested in a theft case fled the general lock-up at Nallasopara police station by tearing open its tin roof with his bare hands.
The accused has been identified as Rizwan Maniyar (28), a resident of Thakurpada in Dahisar, who was arrested by the local crime branch of the Palghar police on Thursday. Maniyar was produced in court and remanded in police custody, after which he was lodged in the general lock-up at Nallasopara station on Friday evening.
On Saturday morning, the Nallasopara police discovered that Maniyar had escaped.
“The roof of the lock-up is made up of tin sheets. The accused tore two of the sheets loose, climbed up through the gap, and jumped to the ground, after which he ran away,” said Additional Superintendent of Police Yogesh Kumar, Palghar police.
The Nallasopara police have now registered a case of escaping from lawful custody against Maniyar and have launched a hunt for him. Teams of the Nallasopara police and the local crime branch are making inquiries in his locality and at the places he is known to have friends. A wireless alert has been sent to the Thane, Thane Rural and Mumbai Police commissionerates, along with his description, while his picture is being circulated on WhatsApp groups.
Mr. Kumar said, “We have initiated an inquiry into the state of the lock-up to find out how the accused was able to pry the roof loose with his bare hands. This is the first time that such an incident has occurred.”
Sources said the Palghar police are likely to conduct a review of the state of all the lock-ups in the commissionerate.
