A 39-year-old gold dealer, who was missing since Thursday, was found dead in his car near his house in Parel’s Lalbaug area on Friday.
The Kalachowky police said passers-by found Ashwin Jain lying dead in the front seat of his car. They informed the police control room after spotting blood on the seat. A police team rushed Patel to JJ Hospital in Byculla, where he was declared dead before admission. The police have recovered from the car a factory-made pistol registered in Patel’s father’s name. A police officer said, “We did not find any suicide note in the car or on Patel’s person. His family members had registered a missing person’s complaint on Thursday. They said Patel was under a lot of stress as he had bought a large quantity of gold and was unable to meet the deadline to pay for it.”
The police officer said that circumstantial evidence and medical reports ruled out foul play. The police are probing if there are grounds for registering an abetment to suicide case.
An Accidental Death Report has been registered, and the statements of family members and business associates will be recorded soon, the police officer said.
Suicide prevention helplines:
I Call. Telephone: 022-25521111, 8a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday to Saturday, Email: icall@tiss.edu.
Aasra. Telephone: 022-275466669, available 24 hours, Monday to Sunday. Email: aasrahelpline@yahoo.com.
Sahai. Telephone: 080-25497777, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday to Saturday. Email: sahaihelpline@gmail.com.