Crime branch is now investigating if Gautam Vora was a part of the escort business and bookie syndicate run by the duo
STAFF REPORTER Mumbai
The crime branch are now probing if Gautam Vora was a part of the escort bus
iness and bookie syndicate jointly run by Vijay Palande and Karankumar Kakkad in Mumbai for the past 3- 4 years.
The Crime Branch has now revealed that Vora was not only well acquainted with Palande and his aides Dhananjay Shinde and Manoj Gajkosh, but also knew the victim Karankumar Kakkad. They are also probing if Vora and Kakkad had signed any business deals together.
Meanwhile, Palande, Shinde and Gajkosh who were arrested in Kakkads murder case have been remanded in police custody by the Esplanade court on Thursday, till May 10.
The crime branch unit IX will use their custody for reconstructing the whole sequence of events by taking the trio to Kumbharli valley, Chiplun, again where Palande ( according to his confession) dumped the body parts of Kakkad. The unit believes that there are more vital evidences that can be unearthed from the Kumbharli valley with Palandes help.
Kakkad had gone missing from his residence in Oberoi Spring tower in Lokhandwala, Andheri ( west) on March 5. According to crime branch he was murdered on the night of March 6 at his residence and his body was chopped in pieces and taken in his own BMW car till Kumbharli valley, where it was dumped.
Even as the police have found no evidence through the Forensic Science Laboratory to prove that Kakkad was murdered and chopped at his residence, they have found some DNA samples in the BMW car and the two suitcases recovered from Arunkumar Tikkus residence at Lokhandwala.
The trio murdered Tikku on the night of April 7. They had decided to use the same modus operandi to dump Tikkus body as they had done in Kakkads case. This time a Xylo car was found below Tikkus residence, which was to be used to dump his body.
Investigations revealed that Palande had borrowed the car from his relative, ( now suspended) inspector Sanjay Shinde.
Shinde took it from his relative Nitin Bhosle.
Bhosle, too, is not the real owner who is yet to be traced.
Kakkads murder came to light on April 11, when Palande gave a confession.
Kakkads family had registered a missing case in March, but claimed that the police took it lightly and Tikkus murder conspiracy could have been thwarted, if they would have seriously dealt with Kakkads missing case.
