Mumbai: Naresh Gor, arrested with suspended constable Vinayak Shinde in the Mansukh Hiren murder case, on Wednesday filed a bail application before a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court.
On Wednesday, his judicial custody had ended. Gor, alleged to be a bookie, was arrested by the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and shortly after that, the NIA had taken over the case, claiming that the auto parts dealer Hiren’s murder is connected with the case of security scare outside industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s residence on 25 February. It was to Hiren that the Scorpio car in which explosives were laden was traced.
The NIA had taken custody of Shinde and Gor from the ATS and produced them both before the NIA court on 30 March. It had sought their custody for 10 days from the court. Gor, the agency told the court, had made a disclosure statement and seven SIM cards and one blank SIM card cover had been recovered as part of the disclosure. The phone that was used to activate the SIM cards was also recovered, it added. Gor had allegedly procured the SIM cards which were used in the murder conspiracy. The SIM cards were handed over by Shinde to Sachin Vaze, who was taken in custody in the bomb scare case and is alleged to be closely involved in the planning of Hiren’s murder.
The court, while remanding the duo to NIA custody till April 7, had stated in its order that there is progress in the investigation, many articles have been recovered and, prima facie, the involvement of the applicant is established and sufficient opportunity must be provided to the investigating officer to dig out the truth. Special judge Prashant R Sitre had further said that the investigation is at a crucial stage. Considering the nature of the offence, the court said that it appears that the accused persons are involved in it. On 7 April, they had been remanded in judicial custody.
