Fugitive held after 24 years for axe-murder of pregnant woman in Raigad

A 49-year-old man, Santosh Rane, was arrested after 24 years for allegedly murdering his pregnant sister-in-law in 2001, living under a new identity.

NAVI MUMBAI: Nearly 24 years after he allegedly hacked his nine-month pregnant sister-in-law to death, a 49-year-old man who had all but disappeared off the police radar has been arrested from Pimpri-Chinchwad in Pune, where he had been living under a new name and a new life.

Fugitive held after 24 years for axe-murder of pregnant woman in Raigad

Raigad Police on Thursday arrested the accused, Santosh Ganpat Rane, who had been working as a caterer in Sangvi under the alias ‘Santosh Ganpat Patil’. Rane was wanted in a 2001 murder case registered at Neral police station under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code.

Superintendent of police Aachal Dalal said the breakthrough followed months of revived technical surveillance and “meticulous groundwork”.

“He had vanished without a trace for more than two decades. We reopened the case file, reworked every lead and instructed the team to pursue every technical input available,” Dalal said.

According to the original complaint, Rane and his brother Anil lived with their families in Pohir village, Karjat. Rane, then unemployed, often quarrelled with his sister-in-law, Gulab.

On February 2, 2001, Anil had left early for work at a local brick kiln. When he returned around noon, he witnessed his brother arguing heatedly with Gulab. Their mother stepped in and asked Rane to leave the house.

But within minutes, police said, Rane returned with an axe. “He launched a brutal assault, inflicting deep wounds on her neck and arms,” an officer from the investigating team said. Gulab, who was nine months pregnant and nearing delivery, died on the spot. Rane fled the village immediately after.

A vanished man, a new identity

The trail went cold for years until investigators conducting a fresh technical review on 20 November traced a man using Rane’s photograph and details, but under a different name, in the Famous Chowk area of Sangvi.

A team from Neral police station, API Shivani Dhawale, PSI Bhaskar Gangadhar Gachhe, and constables Rajabhau Kekan and Ashruba Bendre, reached the area, quietly verified the identity, and detained the suspect.

“He had completely reinvented himself, new name, new occupation, new city. He believed he would never be caught,” API Dhawale said.

During questioning, Rane initially attempted to mislead the officers but eventually confessed, police said.

SDPO Rahul Gayakwad, who supervised the operation, said, “This arrest closes a 24-year chapter for the department. The next step is to map his movements over the years and investigate whether anyone assisted him in evading arrest.”

Rane has now been brought back to Neral, where he has been formally arrested. PSI Nitin Mandalik is conducting further investigation.