Mumbai: Police find mobile phone of key accused in double murder

The Kandivli police investigating the double murders of artist Hema Upadhyay and her lawyer Haresh Bhambani have recovered the mobile phone of Vidhyadhar Rajbhar, the key accused in the case who is absconding.

The Kandivli police investigating the double murders of artist Hema Upadhyay and her lawyer Haresh Bhambani have recovered the mobile phone of Vidhyadhar Rajbhar, the key accused in the case who is absconding.

On December 11, Hema Upadhyay (above) and her lawyer Haresh Bhambani were allegedly murdered by Vidhyadhar Rajbhar and his employees. (HT file photo)

After the incident, Rajbhar escaped with his wife’s mobile phone and left his own phone at home. He had instructed his wife to contact an advocate from Goregaon and told her to destroy the SIM card after making the call, said the police.

The police recovered Rajbhar’s phone and have been scrutinising the phone’s data to gather evidence in the case, said a police source, who added they have not recovered the SIM card.

According to the police, Rajbhar used his wife’s phone after he escaped and had contacted one of his friends in Mumbai from Itarasi to ask for money. After that, he did not make a single call and switched off his mobile phone only after he reached Bhusawal. The police are still trying to trace his location.

The police have searched Rajbhar’s warehouse and his Charkop residence. Currently, his wife and mother are staying at a relative’s home in Goregaon; the police are keeping a watch on them.

Meanwhile, the police are interrogating Chintan, Hema’s estranged husband, but have not got any new leads in the case. The Kandivli police, who had recently recovered two mobile phones from a drain while searching it, said it seems the two recovered phones were of no use. “We have not sent the mobile phones to the forensic lab in Kalina as it appears that the phones do not belong to the victims or the accused. The phones are very old and completely damaged,” said a police officer.