In a significant breakthrough in the former NCP Corporator Vanraj Andekar Murder case, the Pune city police Crime Branch Unit-1 arrested the middleman who provided information and money to the primary accused. The Pune police have arrested an on-record criminal Prasad Pandurang Belhekar for indulging in the murder conspiracy of Vanraj Andekar.
Assistant Police Commissioner Ganesh Ingle of the Crime Branch unit-1 is in charge of the Andekar Murder case. ACP Ingle along with the investigation team while investigating the connection between the arrested accused Ganesh Komkar, Jayant Komkar, Prakash Komkar and the primary accused Somnath alias Soma Gaikwad a piece of significant information came to light while carrying out the technical analysis. Investigations revealed that the arrested accused were in contact with a common person identified as Prasad Pandurang Belhekar (age 33, resident of 256, Nana Peth, Pune). Belhekar who is an on-record criminal with serious crimes registered against him at the Samarth Police station was in contact with the accused Ganesh Komkar, Somnath Gaikwad, Tushar Kadam, Aniket Dudhbhate and Sameer Kale.
ACP Ingle along with the investigation team members including Police Inspector Shabbir Sayeed of Unit-1, Assistant Police Inspector Abhijeet Patil, Police Constable Shubham Desai and Rajendra Landge tracked Prasad Belhekar and arrested him. While interrogation it was revealed that Belhekar was well known to Ganesh Komkar and was in regular touch with him and used to regularly meet him and talk with him on the mobile phone.
The accused Ganesh Komkar was introduced to the other accused Aniket Dudhbhate, Tushar Kadam, on the mobile phone by Belhekar and also introduced him to Somnath Gaikwad and Sameer Kale. As per the police, Belhekar helped Komkar in the arrangement of money and other help required to kill Vanraj Andekar. Belhekar allegedly helped the accused with inputs about Andekar.
Further investigations by the crime branch revealed that Belhekar had a past tussle with Rishub Andekar who is the brother of Vanraj Andekar and an active member of the Andekar gang. Rishab had earlier assaulted Belhekar out of an old dispute. Belhekar was enraged by this and was waiting for an opportunity to retaliate. Accordingly, Belhekar played the part of the middleman between Ganesh Komkar, Somnath Gaikwad, Tushar Kadam, Sameer Kale and Aniket Dudhbhate and brought them together as part of the murder conspiracy.
On September 09, Vanraj Andekar was brutally murdered in Nana Peth and it was revealed that Belhekar had actively participated in the crime.
Prasad Pandurang Belhekar (age 33, resident of 256, Nana Peth, Pune) was arrested by the Crime Branch Unit-1 on September 19 in the evening and produced before the court. The Pune sessions court has granted police custody to Belhekar till September 24 for further investigations.