Gangster’s cousin held for threatening key witness

Vadodara: The detection of crime branch (DCB) arrested Tarun Patel alias Jago, the cousin brother of historysheeter Kalpesh Patel alias Kalpesh Kachhiya, on Saturday for threatening a key witness in three murder cases.
Jago was picked up by the crime branch sleuths last week for questioning but was released later. Police had then arrested another co-accused Deepak Dhobi in the case.

During investigation, police learnt that Jago, who worked at a petrol pump in Makarpura, used to send Dhobi and three others to complainant Rakesh Parekh’s office in Maneja and threaten him to change his statement.

Police sources said that during initial interrogation, Jago denied the charges and said that he has never met the co-accused and does not know Parekh. Cops will further interrogate Jago how he was to benefit if Parekh had changed his statement in the court. Police are also suspecting that besides Parekh, Jago had even threatened another witness, who had turned hostile in the court.

Parekh is the key witness in three cases in which Sanjay Dave alias Sanjay Rx, former henchman of late gangster Mukesh Harjani is accused. Cops suspect that Kachhiya and Dave, both who are in jail as accused in Harjani murder case, may have struck a deal. “Kachhiya might have promised Dave that he will help him get acquittal in the three cases. However, it is unclear what Dave would have promised Kachhiya,” said a police official. After receiving threats, Parekh had told the court that he is being pressurized to turn hostile after which court ordered police protection for him. Later, Parekh registered the plaint with crime branch.