Mumbai: The Kenyan national arrested on Wednesday for allegedly attacking seven people with a knife in south Mumbai is a former film industry extra and has shared the screen with Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar, the police's investigation has revealed.
The accused, John Sujas Menti, went on a slashing spree near the Bombay High Court on Wednesday, leaving seven people injured. He was arrested by the Azad Maidan police and has been in their custody ever since. The police have been trying to interrogate him in order to know more about his background as well as the reason behind his murderous rage.
Investigating officers said that on Thursday night, Menti said he had starred in a television commercial with Kumar. The team did not believe him at first but he was able to name the exact make and model of the mobile handset, for which the commercial was shot.
“We found the ad on YouTube and played it, and saw Menti in it. We spent quite a lot of time comparing the person in the ad with the person in our custody before concluding it was the same person,” an officer with the Azad Maidan police station said.
Menti further added that he had starred in choreographer-turned-filmmaker Farah Khan's ensemble movie Happy New Year.
“We sat and watched the entire movie last night but could not spot him anywhere,” the officer said.
The revelations have come forward during the police's probe into Menti's background, which is essential as he is a foreign national. The police need to check several facts like his visa status, his passport and any criminal record that he might have.
“So far, the accused has said that he came to India in 2004 with the intention of studying here. He has also stayed in Haryana where, according to him, he lost his passport,” said assistant commissioner of police Milind Khetle, Azad Maidan division.
Officers said that Menti keeps saying different things every time we interrogate him, which makes it hard to put together a proper profile of him. Sometimes he claims his parents are dead, while other times he says his mother stays in a village 80 kilometres from Nairobi and sends him money regularly through an overseas wire service. He also gives different names for himself.
“We have written to the Kenyan High Commission seeking any and all information they might have on him, including the different names he has given for himself. We are also finding out from other agencies, including the Anti Narcotics Cell, whether he has a criminal record with any of them,” Khetle said.
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