Mumbai News: Absconding Prisoner Arrested After Three Months Of Police Chase

Mumbai: In an attempt to nab a 28-year-old absconding prisoner who was convicted of life imprisonment for allegedly strangulating a minor, three personnel from the RCF police spent the last three months looking for the accused fearing he might end up committing another crime.

The accused, Ajay aka Kallu Babu Chetre was first arrested in 2014 for allegedly sexually assaulting and strangulating a 16-year-old girl, by entering her house. The victim had suffered vocal impairment and lost her ability to speak in 2017, and the court later convicted him to life imprisonment.

He was first placed at Nagpur jail, then Amravati jail, and then Amravati Open jail based on his clean records and performance inside the jail. However, in March of this year, he got out on parole and was supposed to return by April 9, but he didn’t.

The Free Press Journal had reported in June how the RCF police, based on the complaint by Amravati Open jail authorities, registered a first information report (FIR) against prisoner number C/656 Kallu, for jumping jail. Kallu didn’t ever have a mobile phone making it difficult for cops to trace his location.

Chembur-based woman

Assistant police inspector Ravindra Patil initiated the investigation and with the help of handwritten letters that were written and received by Kallu, came to know about his alleged relationship with a Chembur-based woman Amreek Sansoga. After finding his clothes at her house, she was arrested for harbouring an absconder. However, she didn’t reveal anything about Kallu’s movements.

The other handwritten letters were from ex-inmates with whom he was close while at Nagpur jail. The locations of these inmates were Thane, Navi Mumbai, Nagpur and even Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh. Patil and his team kept moving to these locations, but couldn’t find the accused.

“He clearly didn’t have plans to return, so he was planning on robbery or contract killing, is what they told us,” said Patil.

The breakthrough

The breakthrough in the case was Kallu’s phone call to Amreek, using his mother’s mobile. “He called her with an unknown number, which turned out to be his mother’s, that gave away his location,” Patil added. Kallu’s movement started towards Amreek’s house as it was her birthday when Kallu was trapped and arrested.

Kallu has been blacklisted by the jail authorities making it impossible for him to get out. Currently, he is placed at Arthur Road Jail while the police are making a chargesheet in the case, which will be submitted in court shortly.