An event contractor for a south Mumbai club and his two accomplices were arrested by the Gamdevi police for allegedly killing a labourer for demanding more money after a wedding ceremony.

The victim was identified as Babu. Police said he was in his mid twenties and they are still trying to ascertain his address.

The accused were identified as Ramesh Dubla alias Bobby, 59, Amarjit Yadav, 28 and Mohammed Sharif, 25. While Yadav was arrested on Sunday, the other two were arrested on Wednesday.

Police said Bobby had hired Babu to help with the catering service he was providing for a wedding. Bobby told police that after the wedding ceremony, he and Babu had consumed alcohol. The two then hired Yadav’s tempo to transport the catering material. While Yadav was driving, Babu began asking Bobby for his payment. Bobby said he paid him Rs 1,500 but he wanted more. When Bobby refused, Babu snatched Bobby’s debit card, which enraged Bobby. Police said that in a fit of rage, Bobby picked up a hammer and hit Babu on his head. He then allegedly threw an injured Babu out of the tempo along with his friend and asked Yadav to speed away.

Police had found Babu with severe injury marks on his head near Babulnath temple on last Saturday. With no identity proof or mobile phone found on the victim, police were unable to determine who he was. According to Gamdevi police officers, Babu was taken to a hospital where he died on Monday. The officers said that after registering a case of attempt to murder, they scanned CCTV footage of the area. “We found a blurry image of a tempo passing by the area 1am. However, neither was the number plate clear nor the name written on the body of the vehicle,” said an officer.

But upon zooming in on the footage, police found the words, ‘Hari Om Hari’ written above the tempo’s windscreen. “We scanned all the tempos in the vicinity. We found the tempo near a hotel near Charni Road, but that tempo was blue in colour and we were looking for a white one,” added the officer.

When police questioned the owner of the tempo, he led them to Yadav. Yadav told police that on Monday night, Bobby, who is an event contractor for many hotels in south Mumbai, had approached him. “Yadav told us that Bobby wanted to hire his tempo to pick up catering material from a south Mumbai hotel and drop it at a club nearby. Yadav said he drove the vehicle while Bobby and Babu were at the back,” said the officer.

Yadav also confessed to police that after a few minutes, he heard a scuffle between the two men. He stopped the vehicle at the south Mumbai hotel and the third accused, Mohammed Sharif, entered the tempo. Yadav said that the two men picked up an injured Babu and threw him by the roadside and asked Yadav to drive away.

Police will present the three in court on Friday.

First Published: Mar 08, 2019 12:28 IST