Thane: 24-year-old gets life for killing trader in 2014

THANE: A 24-year-old brick kiln worker has been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by the district court for the brutal murder of a Ghatkopar-based trader in 2014. The district and sessions judge HM Patwardhan also fined the accused Sushil Lalchand Yadav with the sum of Rs 10,000.
Prosecutor Varsha Chandane told the court that the victim a resident of Ghatkopar Mahendra Bhavanji Maru, 46, was into the business of purchasing bricks from various locations. “He always carried heavy cash with the suppliers at the kilns,” prosecution told the court. The victim had also purchased four guntas of land where the accused lived. As the accused and the victim knew each other very well the accused had taken a sum of Rs 15,000 from him. The victim who was to get married in May 2014 was in need of money and asked it back. It was on January 11, 2014 under the pretext of showing the victim good quality bricks, the accused took him to an isolated place and later dragged him to a jungle in the Adherpada of Pimpalsheth village and stabbed him to death. He smashed his face to disfigure it. The accused later fled with Rs 3 Lakh cash from the victim’s car.

Investigation officer Ganpat Pingle whose deposition was vital in the case told the court that the victim’s body was recovered from the spot on the same day and the accused was arrested on January 15 from his village.