MARGAO: “Like a leopard, I will lie in wait,” said the line printed on the taxi of accused Francis Xavier Pereira. Taxi driver by profession, Francis used to drive his own Maruti van taxi for a living. This phrase on the taxi of Francis was observed by Constable Avinash Naik and understanding that the meaning of the phrase is more than what meets the eye, the team begun investigating the matter in that direction.
Francis is unmarried and reportedly lives in a joint family with three of his brothers and a sister who have children. After his conviction in a firing case, Francis was released from jail and had bought the taxi and has been making a living out of this.
Several people from Curchorem call him ‘Boy’. Many people, though, were shocked and surprised after his arrest as they say that he never looked or sounded that bad. “He always greeted all with a smile and never left without small chat,” said a Curchoremkaar.
However, the person who remained elusive for the last 14 years and had gone on a spree of desecration has been now caught by the police team of Ravindra Dessai, Avinash Naik and Vishal Bhuikar. They have been lauded by the police top rank officials and political stalwarts.
It is also learnt that a journalist from a vernacular daily reporting from Margao too helped the police in their investigation.
