Accused in Daman double murder held in Mumbai

Cold-blooded: A video grab of a group of gun-wielding assailants entering a bar and firing at members of a rival gang in Daman on April 3.

Mumbai: The Mumbai Police Crime Branch on Saturday arrested an accused who was wanted in a double murder that occured in Daman in April this year.

On April 3 this year, businessman Ajay Patel and his friend Dhiraj Patel were on their way home in their car when it was rammed by an SUV. The duo, suspecting that they were being attacked, ran into a bar close to the spot, and the assailants followed them inside, after which both of them were shot dead. The accused arrested on Saturday, identified as Hassan Siddiqui (44), was allegedly leading the assailants.

According to Crime Branch sources, Mr Siddiqui, a Mumbai native, was in hiding since the murder and the Daman police had sought the Mumbai police's assistance in tracing and apprehending him. Officials said that earlier this week, some local informants tipped off the Unit III of the Crime Branch that Mr Siddiqui had been seen in his locality.

“We first sent a team in plainclothes to stake out his house next to the Hindustan Masjid near the Byculla Railway station but failed to spot him. Making inquiries with his neighbours was a risky option as it might have alerted him. We then formed several teams so that his house could be kept under round the clock surveillance,” a Crime Branch officer who was part of the operation said.

From Wednesday to Saturday, Crime Branch personnel constantly staked out the locality, keeping an eye on the Siddiqui residence as well as nearby houses. Finally, on Saturday morning, an informant tipped off the police that Mr Siddiqui was on his way home. He was intercepted near his residence and taken to the Unit III office for inquries, during which he allegedly confessed to his role in the Daman double murder and was placed under arrest.

Crime Branch officers said that Mr Siddiqui was earlier involved in liquor smuggling on a smaller scale, bringing liquor from Daman at cheap rates and selling it in Mumbai.

“After the central government's demonetisation initiative, he suffered massive losses due to the decrease in cash flow. When thing started coming back to normal, he wanted to diversify, and pledged allegiance to a gutkha smuggling ring in Daman. One of the two victims of the double murder, Ajay Patel, was a rival of this ring, and the murder was part of Mr Siddiqui's initiation into the gang,” an officer who questioned Mr Siddiqui after his arrest said.

Mr Siddiqui was subsequently handed over to the Daman police for further inquiries.