Ambernath murder and rape: Cops nab 25-year-old autorickshaw driver

The accused had fled with all the belongings of the couple, including mobile phones after killing the man and raping the woman.

A 25-year-old autorickshaw driver from Ulhasnagar was arrested on Sunday for shooting a 26-year-old man dead and raping his 25-year-old girlfriend on the Ambernath Titwala road, a week ago.

He was arrested on Sunday. (HT File)

The accused had fled with all the belongings of the couple, including mobile phones after killing the man and raping the woman. He was traced through the woman’s mobile phone. A case has been lodged with the Titwala police station under relevant sections of the IPC and the Fire Arms Act. The police said the accused used to watch porn regularly. On March 5, he had watched another porn clip when he came across the couple and immediately hatched a plan to kill the man and rape the woman.

“The man picked up his girlfriend from Ambernath on a two-wheeler and they were headed towards Titwala for a joyride. When he stopped his bike and went to answer nature’s call, the accused came in front of them and demanded money. On being asked to go away, he threatened to kill the man. Soon he pulled out his revolver and fired three shots at the man, killing him,” said an officer from the Thane rural local crime branch.

“Senior police inspector Venkat Andhale and assistant police inspector Api Pramod Badak, along with few other officers had formed five teams with 45 policemen. We used the woman’s mobile phone, that the accused had robbed, to trace him.”

“The accused had bought the revolver from Aurangabad last year in January for Rs15,000 to rob people. He also confessed to shooting another man which left him injured, a couple of months ago. He was staying in a lodge at Ulhasnagar . Today, we laid a trap for him and since he came to know about it, we chased him for almost 200 metres. He will be produced in court tomorrow,” said the officer. Two days after the incident, a sketch was also made of the accused. Another officer said, “We sent pictures of many suspects to the woman. When we sent his picture, she fainted. She later confirmed it was him.” When he was caught, the accused confessed to the crime.