Rival gang members detained in joint action by Pune, Navi Mumbai Police
The arrested suspects were identified as Ramdas Marane (36), and Vitthal Shelar (36), both from Mulshi. Apart from them, four more were detained in a joint operation conducted by Crime Branch Pune City and Crime Branch Navi Mumbai Police on Monday
SLUG: Mohol Murder Case
The crime branch unit of the Pune city police arrested two and detained nine suspects in connection with gangster Sharad Mohol’s murder case on Monday, officials said.
The arrested suspects were identified as Ramdas Marane (36), and Vitthal Shelar (36), both from Mulshi. Apart from them, four more were detained in a joint operation conducted by Crime Branch Pune City and Crime Branch Navi Mumbai Police on Monday. Later in the day, the Pune Crime branch unit detained five more suspects from Mulshi.
Amol Zende, DCP Crime said, “On Monday morning, in a raid conducted with Navi Mumbai police, we have detained a total of six suspects from Panvel. Prima facie, it seems that three of them were involved in criminal conspiracy in the Mohol murder case.’’
Zende also informed that the crime branch unit also detained five more suspects from the Mulshi area for interrogation, and all eleven accused will be produced in court on Tuesday.
He further added, “Prima facie it seems that, arrested accused Shelar and Marne have been part of conspiracy to eliminate Mohol. They have old rivalry with Sharad Mohol. To eliminate Mohol they provided backing to Munna Polekar and his associates. Hence, we have arrested them under sections 120(B) and further investigation is going on.”
One of the two arrested, Vitthal Shelar, is a well-known gangster in the Mulshi area. He was booked in murder, attempted murder, extortion, and many other criminal activities. In 2014, Shelar was booked under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
According to the Police, there was rivalry between Shelar and Mohol over the latter’s dominance in the area. Shelar was earlier part of the Marne gang and after the death of Kishor Marne, he started recruiting boys for his gang.
In 2022, there were conflicts between Mohol and Shelar over a tender for e-waste scrap issued by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). Moreover, Shelar threatened one of Mohol’s gang members, Siddhesh Hagavane, by putting a gun to his head.
In January 2022, Mohol attacked Shelar’s office and threw stones and plant pots at cars that were leaving the office. A case regarding the same was registered against Mohol and his gang members at the Hinjewadi police station. Police sources said that this incident triggered the Shelar-Mohol feud and since then, Shelar had been planning to avenge Mohol’s act. Police suspect that Shelar eliminated Mohol through Munna Polekar and his associates.