Thane crime of passion: Man kills builder’s son for blackmailing friend for sex

According to police, the incident occurred at around 9.30 am on Friday, in Sanchar Society, Kopri, where the deceased Swayam Paranjpe lived

THANE: A 24-year-old man, son of a former police officer, and his 20-year-old woman friend, walked into Kopri police station, in Thane East, on Friday afternoon, to turn themselves in, after allegedly killing a 33-year-old son of a local builder. The man told police officers that he committed the crime as the victim was allegedly blackmailing his friend, seeking sexual favours.

Man kills builder’s son for blackmailing his friend for sex

According to police, the incident occurred at around 9.30 am on Friday, in Sanchar Society, Kopri, where the deceased Swayam Paranjpe lived. His family resides in Ghodbunder Road.

Soon after the duo – Mayuresh Dhumal and his friend (whose name police did not reveal) -- walked into the police station, the former confessed to the crime, aided by his friend. Both were eventually arrested.

This is the backstory of the woman and Swayam and the lead-up to the killing, shared by officers at Kopri police station.

A resident of Chendani Koliwada, in Thane West, she met Swayam at a wedding on April 28, 2024. The two struck up conversation and soon became friends; they were in touch with each other on the phone regularly.

By the month of May Swayam had allegedly convinced her to meet him, and the two would often go on long drives. On one such occasion he had allegedly laced her soft drink with sedatives that led her to become unconscious. He then stripped her and took nude pictures.

She told the police, following this, he started using the pictures to blackmail and coerce her for sex. As the alleged intimidation intensified and she refused to give in, he threatened to circulate her pictures on social media. Finding herself cornered, she then confided in Mayuresh, an old friend who also went to the same college as her, about the trauma she was under over a period of time.

The duo then decided to confront Swayam. Mayuresh first spoke to him on the phone asking him to stop harassing his friend and delete the pictures. When Swayam paid no heed to the appeal, Mayuresh devised a plan to threaten him with a sharp weapon.

And so, at 9 am on Friday, the woman called up Swayam to ascertain that he was home, following which she and Mayuresh landed up at his residence purportedly to talk things over hoping to put an end to the ordeal. The discussion turned into a heated exchange, which led to a scuffle between the two men. Mayuresh threatened to use the sickle he was carrying, if he did not delete the pictures. However, Swayam remained resolute.

A physical fight ensued and Mayuresh attacked Swayam on the head with the sickle, followed by several blows on other parts of the body, said a police officer.

The 33-year-old died on the spot due to excessive loss of blood.

An officer who arrived at the spot later, said, “After the incident, the two came to the Kopri police station and informed the police about their crime, expressing no regret about their actions. They had planned their move for Thursday night, but since Swayam was not at home at the time, they deferred it to Friday morning.” He added that a cutter and the sickle were recovered from the accused, before the two were arrested for the brutal murder. Forensic teams also investigated the scene and collected evidence.

A postmortem was conducted at Kalwa Government Hospital, which revealed that Swayam was attacked approximately 30 times on the head and other parts of the body, the officer added.