Gaurav Chandel murder: Stolen SUV recovered from Ghaziabad

Police probing the murder of Greater Noida’s Gaur City resident Gaurav Chandel, said his stolen SUV, Kia Seltos, was found parked in Akash Nagar locality, near NH-9,

Police probing the murder of Greater Noida’s Gaur City resident Gaurav Chandel, said his stolen SUV, Kia Seltos, was found parked in Akash Nagar locality, near NH-9, under the jurisdiction of the Masuri police station. The Ghaziabad police said the car was parked there by some unidentified men around 10.30pm Tuesday.

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Chandel’s bullet-riddled body was recovered by his family and friends during the course of a night-long search they had launched after he went missing on January 6. He was allegedly murdered while on way his home to Gaur City from Gurugram, where he worked as a regional manager with a private health care solutions company.

A while before the incident, he had spoken to his wife Preeti Chandel, around 10.22pm, and told her that he was near the Parthala roundabout. However, the victim’s phone was unreachable soon after that and his family and friends launched a search for him — they found his body in a service lane between Parthala and river Hindon Bridge around 4am on January 7.

The newly purchased SUV was stolen by the assailants along with victim’s laptop, two phones and wallet.

“The information about the car was given to us by a retired policeman outside whose house some persons had parked it and fled. The resident heard the men breaking the SUV’s registration plates and they later took away the pieces with them. They had come along in another car, apart from Chandel’s SUV, and they in that car. The CCTV footage of the men leaving behind the car is with the police but their faces are not clear as it was dark,” Neeraj Kumar Jadaun, superintendent of police (rural), said.

The police suspect that the SUV was abandoned as the murder case was making headlines and the Noida police had also launched a hectic search for the suspects.

“The car had a thick coating of dust and no belongings whatsoever were found inside. It appears that the car was parked or hidden for several days and the suspects decided to abandon it in order to evade police. Forensic evidence has been collected from the vehicle,” a source from the Ghaziabad police said.

“The CCTV footage shows two persons parking the car. We suspect that there could be two more but they were not clearly visible. They all got into the other car and fled,” the source said.

Chandel’s family Wednesday afternoon said they came to know about the recovery only when media persons started sending them pictures of the car.

“The Noida police did not tell us anything. My brother had bought the car on a loan taken from a private bank. The second key of the car is still with us. The police should tell us where was the car hidden for the past one week,” Shalini Chandel, victim’s sister, said.

“The car was probably left behind by the assailants after we launched a social media campaign along with the vehicle pictures and registration number,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Noida police claimed that the discovery of the car was a result of their extensive search.

“Six teams of Noida police carried out thorough checking in several parts of Ghaziabad on Tuesday. Probably, it was this pressure that forced the suspects to abandon the car,” Devendra Singh, case investigating officer, said.

The Noida police also reiterated that the discovery of the car is vital and will lead them to the suspects. “We will work to trace the route of the car from the location where it was found. The CCTV footage from nearby areas and routes will be gathered and we are hopeful that the case will be cracked soon,” Singh said.