Police have arrested the accused, Jitesh, who booked Yusuf’s cab on the night of August 9 from Bijnor, and are on the lookout for two others.
Investigation into the murder of 40-year-old Ola cab driver Mohammad Yusuf (40), whose body was found 200 km from his home, in Uttar Pradesh, has revealed that it was the result of a robbery gone wrong.
Police have arrested the accused, Jitesh, who booked Yusuf’s cab on the night of August 9 from Bijnor, and are on the lookout for two others.
“Jitesh booked Yusuf’s cab and murdered him with help from two other passengers. They took him far away from the capital and beat him, thinking he had around Rs 15,000 with him. In the scuffle that ensued, one of them choked him,” said DCP (north) Nupur Prasad.
After the murder, the accused tried to flee with Yusuf’s car, and his body inside, until they spotted local police. They then dumped the car and fled with the body, carrying it several kilometres before dumping it in a canal, police said.
Yusuf’s murder had initially confounded the UP police since his car was discovered in Achhnera area, while his body was found more than 20 km away in Ol village on August 10. Police claimed they waited 72 hours for someone to claim his body before cremating him.
However, Yusuf’s family has alleged police did not wait for the prescribed time limit, and were “callous” in “cremating a Muslim”.
A Delhi Police officer said there is a possibility that the UP Police did not wait 72 hours before the cremation — claims denied by cops in UP.
Delhi Police said they are on the lookout for two other passengers, who have been identified. According to police, the three accused booked the cab at night thinking that the driver would have the day’s earnings with him.
Meanwhile, Yusuf’s family has requested Delhi Police for a DNA test to ascertain if the ashes, kept in a local mosque, are indeed of Yusuf.