19-year-old dragged 300 metres by tempo after bike skid, dies on Raigad road

NAVI MUMBAI: A 19-year-old youth was killed after being allegedly run over and dragged for nearly 300 metres by an unidentified tempo on the Apta–Dandphata road near Rasayani in Raigad district on Thursday afternoon, in a hit-and-run that left police piecing together the victim’s identity hours later

NAVI MUMBAI: A 19-year-old youth was killed after being allegedly run over and dragged for nearly 300 metres by an unidentified tempo on the Apta–Dandphata road near Rasayani in Raigad district on Thursday afternoon, in a hit-and-run that left police piecing together the victim’s identity hours later.

19-year-old dragged 300 metres by tempo after bike skid, dies on Raigad road

According to the Rasayani police, the accident occurred around 1 pm on April 15 near Apta village in Panvel taluka.

The deceased was identified as Ajay Santosh Katkari, 19, a resident of Dawarnagar tribal hamlet in Uran tehsil. He was travelling as a pillion rider with his relative, Rajesh Laxman Katkari, 21, who was riding the motorcycle.

Police said the duo were on a Splendor motorcycle travelling from Uran to attend a relative’s haldi ceremony in Apta when the mishap occurred. While negotiating a sharp turn on the Apata–Dandphata stretch, the motorcycle reportedly skidded, throwing both riders onto the road.

While the rider escaped with minor injuries, Ajay Katkari fell onto the carriageway, where an unidentified tempo allegedly ran over him. Investigators said his clothes got entangled in the vehicle, which dragged him for nearly 300 metres before speeding away.

The driver fled the scene and remains untraced.

“Police reached the spot after receiving information and found that the rider was unconscious. He was shifted to MGM Hospital in Navi Mumbai. The presence of a pillion rider was not known initially. Since there are no lights on the road, the number plate of the tempo was not visible,” the investigating officer said.

In a breakthrough, a villager found a crushed mobile phone near the accident spot and handed it over to police. After inserting the SIM card into another device, calls from the victim’s relatives alerted officers that the injured rider had not been travelling alone. Upon regaining partial consciousness, the rider also confirmed that a second person had been with him.

On April 16, Ajay Katkari’s body was found by the roadside, around 300 metres from the accident site.

In another fatal mishap in Raigad district, a 37-year-old cement mixer truck driver died after his vehicle overturned into a creek within the Revdanda police station limits late on April 15.

The accident occurred around 11.15 pm near a creek bridge on a kutcha road leading towards Chune Koliwada from the RMC plant area. The complainant, who was walking home from the plant, was offered a lift by the driver, who was known to him.

Police said that after travelling 50 to 60 metres and crossing the bridge, the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle due to rash and negligent driving and failure to assess road conditions. The truck veered off the road and plunged into the creek, overturning in the water.

The complainant suffered head injuries, while the driver, identified as Arvind Kumar Prabha Shankar, 37, a native of Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh, became trapped inside the cabin. Officials said water entered the cabin, leading to his death by drowning.