Panvel: Teen murdered brutally with knives and axe, three held

The Crime Branch arrested three persons in connection with the murder of a 19-year-old boy in Shivkar village in Panvel taluka. The teen was found murdered near his house in the wee hours on March 29. There were injuries on his head and other parts of his body. An axe and a knife were used to murder him.

The arrested accused were identified as Dinesh Kumar Saroj, 20, Virendra Kumar Saroj, 21, Chandrasekhar Saroj, 20. All are residents of Usarli village in Panvel taluka and natives of Uttar Pradesh. The deceased was identified as Vinay Vinod Patil and he was selling flowers and coconut at a temple in the village.

Accused came to steal from Patil's house

Amit Kale, DCP (crime) said that all the accused admitted to have committed the crime. “Patil died due to assault by these three accused. They used a knife and an axe to assault him,” said Kale.

According to police, all three accused had come to the village around 2 am on March 29 to steal chickens and other items. Since many villagers just keep their doors shut with a wooden latchet, they used to target those houses. “They stole mobile and other items from the house of Patil. In the meantime, Patil woke up and chased them. After going some distance, there was a scuffle with the accused,” said Kale. He added that three overpowered the victim and were assaulted with a knife and an axe. Patil died on the spot due to severe injuries.

Her sister woke up around 3.30 am and found Patil, not at home, along with his father and sister started searching for him. They found Patil’s near Ganapati Ghat of Morchula Lake. Later the police were called and a case was registered at Panvel City Police Station under section 302 of IPC against an unknown person.

Accused worked in bakery

Kale said that the crime scene was recreated and the area was cordoned off and investigated thoroughly. “We came to know about the three accused that they were working at a bakery in a nearby village. They were taken into custody and when they were interrogated, they admitted to having committed the crime,” said Kale.