KALYAN: Mechanical engineer Krishnamohan Tiwari’s murder case was cracked within four days with the arrest of four members of a gang, including a minor who is studying for a diploma in engineering. The gang’s mastermind allegedly looted job seekers like Tiwari (47) after assuring them of placements.
Police said Tiwari’s father, Ramsagar, too was killed a few years ago over some other reason. They refused to divulge details of that case though.
On Wednesday, police arrested Rihan Shaikh, Sagar Ponnalla and Sumit Sonawane in the September 11 murder case. All three are residents of Kalyan and aged between 20 and 25. The minor, who was sent to a remand home, is 17 years old.
The police said Tiwari had lost his job in Qatar during the pandemic. He held a job there for six years. Tiwari is survived by his homemaker wife and two children, including a daughter who is in Class XII.
Recently, Tiwari had approached a Diva-based placement agency where the main accused, Shaikh, was a staffer.
Police said Shaikh used the placement agency data to access Tiwari’s details and on September 11 called him at 11.55am to Thakurli in Dombivli with a fictitious job offer.
Vivek Pansare, deputy commissioner of police, Zone 3, Thane police, said, “When the victim reached Thakurli, the accused offered him a ride to ‘the office’ in an autorickshaw driven by Sonawane. During the ride, he first snatched the victim’s mobile phone and his bag. When Tiwari fought back, the accused attacked him with a large knife and a rod. He then dumped the seriously injured victim near Khambalpada and fled.” A traffic policeman spotted Tiwari and immediately rushed him to the local Shivam Hospital, where he died.
Balasaheb Pawar, inspector of the local Manpada police station, said, “We initially went through the victim’s call records and found one suspicious call ahead of the crime. With this lead, we managed to track down Shaikh, the mastermind, and the others.”
Pansare said, “We found Shaikh would obtain the phone numbers of job seekers at the placement company. Since Tiwari protested, the accused killed him. Our team is trying to find whom had the gang similarly robbed earlier.”
