Diva man traced to Delhi after killing neighbour, in cop custody

Thane: A man accused of murdering his neighbour in Diva and fleeing to Delhi was traced and arrested.

The police said that the deceased neighbour was an alcoholic and lived in Diva. It is believed that the accused had befriended the deceased and his wife and would often pester the latter.

A police officer said, "Due to this the deceased and his wife shifted to a different locality, but the accused also joined them to stay there temporarily."

The cop added that on September 4, when the deceased's wife went to visit her parents in Dombivli for a couple of days, the accused joined the deceased and asked him if they could have drinks together. "On September 8, when the two shared drinks and the deceased dozed off, the accused strangulated him to death with a towel and fled," he said. A neighbour found the victim dead the next day and informed the police. Subsequently, the Mumbra police registered a case under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC, said the official. Based on a tip off, the accused was picked up from Delhi. The accused had made a call to the deceased's wife using different sim cards.

The accused admitted to have killed his neighbour and was produced in magistrate court which remanded him to police custody till October 3.