Ghatkopar hoarding collapse: Khan used over 50 SIMs, several handsets to evade arrest

At least 17 people died and 74 were injured after a 140x120 hoarding in Ghatkopar East, erected by Ego Media, collapsed on May 14 this year

MUMBAI: Arshad Khan, the purported business partner of the wife of suspended additional director-general of police, Quaiser Khalid, used over 50 SIM cards and multiple mobile handsets to evade arrest in the Ghatkopar hoarding collapse case for nearly seven months, said police. He also changed his location frequently, visiting Hyderabad, Lucknow and other cities across the country without leaving behind any technical leads which would give his location away.

Ghatkopar hoarding collapse: Khan used over 50 SIMs, several handsets to evade arrest

“This forced us to rely on human intelligence and instincts,” said a police officer. The businessman was eventually nabbed on Monday from Lucknow following a tip-off and remanded in police custody till January 6.

At least 17 people died and 74 were injured after a 140x120 hoarding in Ghatkopar East, erected by Ego Media, collapsed on May 14 this year. Ego Media issued several blank cheques to Khan in 2021 and 2022 after Khalid, then Railway Police Commissioner, gave approval for the company’s hoardings along the Eastern Express Highway, alleged police.

“Khan was not using the same handset and SIM card while he was on the run. He was not even contacting his family members and relatives, so we did not have a lead for six months,” said the officer quoted earlier.

Relying on traditional policing methods, officers working on the case developed human intelligence in Lucknow, which he used to visit frequently for business purposes. A few days ago, after police received a tip-off, a team was dispatched to the northern city. The team kept watch for a few days and nabbed Khan after he was spotted opposite the Bukkal Nawab apartment in the Hussainabad area in Lucknow’s Thakurganj.

“Khan had not changed his attire, so it was not difficult to identify him at first look,” said the officer. He was first taken to Thakurganj police station where legal formalities were completed, and he was arrested in the case.

“He appeared mentally prepared for his arrest in the case,” said the officer.

Khan’s first statement was recorded in the first week of July before the filing of the charge-sheet. Later, the special investigation team probing the case summoned him twice to record his statement, but he did not turn up.

His name came up during the questioning of Ego Media’s former director Janhavi Marathe, who revealed in her police statement that Ego Media had issued several blank cheques to him in 2021 and 2022 after Khalid gave them the approval to install hoardings along the Eastern Express Highway without calling for tenders.

A police officer said that Khan, who had no ostensible connection with Ego Media or the hoardings business, then convinced a dozen people from Govandi to allow him to use their bank accounts to deposit the cheques, totalling over ₹84 lakh. The officer said that Khan deposited the amounts in the bank accounts of unsuspecting people and subsequently withdrew the money.

“He now needs to tell us for what purpose he had taken the money and show some documented evidence,” said a police officer.