Forensic experts on Sunday confirmed that the lorry seized by the Tamil Nadu CB-CID in Kharagpur was indeed the vehicle involved in the road accident in which former Environment Minister Mariyam Pichai was killed on May 23, police said.
Sources with CB-CID investigating team said that a scientific officer from the Tamil Nadu Forensic Science Laboratory (TNFSL) inspected the vehicle with registration number AP16 TB 9744 and found crucial evidence connecting it to the accident.
“The broken wooden pieces collected from the accident spot were determined to be from the lorry's rear door that got damaged upon impact. The heavy vehicle tyre marks lifted from the scene are also those of this lorry,” said an investigating officer.
The lorry was intercepted by the West Bengal police in Kharagpur on May 30 with its owner Imam Sahib after police found Rahamathullah, the driver at the time of the accident, in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, the same morning.
A CB-CID team, along with Imam, arrived with the lorry at their office in Guindy in the early hours of Sunday. Rahamathullah was brought in for questioning on the night of May 31.
The lorry will be taken to Perambalur on Monday for an inspection by the Transport authorities there and will be later produced in the jurisdiction court.
The accident had taken place near Padalur in Perambalur district.
Whether driver Rahamathullah will be arrested for negligent driving is yet to be decided, CB-CID sources added.
