Team Herald
PANJIM/MAPUSA: A marathon search by Crime Branch (CB) led to the arrests of escaped undertrial Vivek Kumar Gautam and his accomplice Mohit alias Ankit on Wednesday evening.
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Gautam, who escaped on Tuesday night, was found hiding in a homestay at Morjim, while Mohit was arrested from the Patradevi border while escaping to Pune.
“A homestay in Morjim was booked in the name of Gautam’s wife and another person. We had reliable information that Gautam will check-in there. Our team was keeping a close vigil. He was arrested as soon as he reached the homestay where his wife was already waiting for him,” an official told Herald.
It is, however, not clear whether Gautam’s wife is a partner to the crime. On immediate questioning of Gautam, the CB team was told that Mohit has boarded an inter-State bus from Mapusa bus stand to Pune. The team rushed to Patradevi where the bus was intercepted and the second accused arrested.
While more details are awaited as both accused were undergoing interrogation till late hours of Wednesday, the CB are also investigating the use of mobile phone inside the jail as the escape seems to be preplanned.
On Tuesday night, Gautam, a native of Chandranagar, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, escaped from police custody after ‘breaking open’ his handcuff when he was taken for a checkup at the North Goa District Hospital.
Gautam was arrested in a dacoity case by Porvorim police in 2019 and was in Colvale central jail since January 2020.
According to police sources, the incident occurred when Gautam complained of stomach pain and vomiting. The jail authorities handed him to the escort cell staff, head constable Rajesh Saraf and police constable Nitin Ambedkar, took him to the North District hospital in a jail van. The undertrial was handcuffed to Ambedkar.
Later after the doctor conducted the medical checkup, Ambedkar and Saraf along with Gautam emerged out of the hospital to return to the Colvale jail. However, when they came out, the jail van was not available.
Followed this, Ambedkar who was handcuffed stepped down in the parking area of the hospital along with Gautam during which the undertrial ‘forcefully broke’ the handcuff and started running.
Ambedkar chased the undertrial but one of Gautam’s accomplices was waiting at the exit gate and sprayed pepper on the police constable.
Meanwhile, another of the accused’s accomplice arrived on a blue and black Honda Dio scooter and the undertrial fled from the spot.
The police constable chased the person who sprayed pepper on him for almost 100 meter and managed to catch him.
However, the undertrial and his other accomplices who escaped on the scooter returned where the second accused was caught, fired a bullet on police constable Nitin who, to save himself, dived to the ground and in the process the third accused also escaped from the crime scene.
Following this, the escort cell staff reported the incident at Mapusa Police station. The Mapusa police team headed by PI rushed to the spot and during investigation, police recovered one full magazine containing 7.65 mm round bullets, pepper spray along with the broken handcuff.
Several police teams were formed to carry out search operations. Police also gathered CCTV footage from the area and based on the footage alerted all bus stands, airport, railway stations and night patrolling staff.
Police sources said that on December 13, Gautam was taken to Agra, UP in connection with an extortion case and returned on December 16. Sources suspect that during his visit to Agra, he may have planned his escape.
Meanwhile, sources said that several CCTV cameras installed in the jail premises are not functioning due to non-maintenance, besides several bulbs are also not functioning.
Police sources also said that for the past several months, there is no doctor on duty 24×7 at the Central Jail. Sources said that if the jail had a doctor on duty, this incident would have not occurred. Sources also said the the assistant superintendent of jail goes off duty after 6pm and after he leaves, the accused and undertrials in the jail take advantage of this and create chaos.
SP North Utkrisht Prasoon and DySp Gajanan Prabhudesai visited the crime scene. A dog squad and finger print experts were also pressed into service.
Mapusa police registered an offence under section 307, 224, 120-B R/W IPC and section 3 R/W 25, 27 of Arms Act.
