The much romanticised practice of making friends with strangers proved fatal for Thane resident Umesh Patil, whose body was found in Dombivli on Thursday morning.
Late on Thursday night, the Anti Extortion Cell of the Thane Police Crime Branch arrested Dombivli resident Praful Pawar for the murder. Officers said CCTV footage and cellular location mapping led them to the accused. Patil’s body was found in Dombivli (West) around 9.30 a.m. in a duffel bag and was identified on the basis of a missing persons report registered two days back by his sons.
A Thane Crime Branch officer said, “Patil and Mr. Pawar met on a local train around six months ago and exchanged numbers, after which they stayed in touch and soon got into a relationship. Patil visited Mr. Pawar frequently at his residence. Around three months ago, Mr. Pawar got married and severed ties with Patil.”
The rejection did not go down well with Patil, who repeatedly tried to contact Mr. Pawar. On Tuesday, Patil went to Mr. Pawar’s residence in Kumbharkhan Pada. Both had an argument which led to a fight, the police said.
“Mr. Pawar strangled Patil in the heat of the moment and later stuffed the body in a duffel bag which he discarded the garbage dump outside Railway Ground in Dombivli (West),” the officer said.
On scanning the CCTV footage police spotted Mr. Pawar on his bike and were able to trace his movement from his residence to the ground and back. They also mapped Patil’s cellular movements, which led them to Mr. Pawar’s residence, sources said.
“Mr. Pawar was arrested after preliminary questioning and handed over to the Vishnu Nagar police for further inquiries,” the officer said.
