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Murder of Mumbai compère: Friend fails polygraph test, sent to judicial custody
The investigating officer said the accused’s statements to the police were inconsistent
The Malwani police told the metropolitan court on Saturday that there has been no progress in the investigation into the murder of emcee Arpita Tiwari, who was found dead at a Malwani society on December 12. Tiwari’s friend Amit Hazra was produced before the court, which remanded him in judicial custody, despite the police’s request that their custody of him be extended. Investigating officer Sudhakar Kore told the court that Hazra had failed a polygraph test as his statements to the police were inconsistent.
On Saturday, Tiwari’s younger sister, Binita, raised questions over the police’s claim that the emcee’s body was discovered around 7.30 am. According to the police, Tiwari’s boyfriend Pankaj Jadhav and Hazra had allegedly found the body in the building duct. They were accompanied by the Manavsthal Heights security manager at the time.
“Pankaj called me around 9.45 am and asked where Tiwari was and if she had come home. Half an hour later, he called again and said plainly that she had committed suicide,” said Binita, who had been waiting outside the court.
Tiwari’s father, Triveninath, said an officer told him that Tiwari fell. “The bathroom window was as high as Tiwari’s arm. She could not have fallen,” he said. Hazra appeared in court with his face covered with a black sheath, which he was not permitted to remove. He stated his name for the record. When asked if he had any complaints against the police, his response was, “no”.
His advocate BD Hatkar told the court that Hazra had been cooperating with the police since December 11, 2017. He submitted to a polygraph test and several other tests, after which he was arrested on January 14, Hatkar said.
“He was called to the police station seven to 10 times prior to his arrest. He cooperated with the police,” he added.
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