close_game
close_game

Lonavla double murder: Pune court acquits accused for lack of evidence

ByNadeem Inamdar
Jul 31, 2024 09:06 AM IST

Pune court on Tuesday acquitted a man arrested in Lonavla double murder case that took place seven years ago due to lack of evidence

Pune: A Pune court on Tuesday acquitted a man arrested in the Lonavla double murder case that took place seven years ago due to lack of evidence. Salim Shaikh was accused of being involved in the murder of two engineering students at Lonavla on April 2, 2017.

Pune court on Tuesday acquitted a man arrested in the Lonavla double murder case that took place seven years ago due to lack of evidence. (Getty Images/iStockphoto (PIC FOR REPRESENTATION))
Pune court on Tuesday acquitted a man arrested in the Lonavla double murder case that took place seven years ago due to lack of evidence. (Getty Images/iStockphoto (PIC FOR REPRESENTATION))

The prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove his involvement, leading to acquittal. The other accused in the case, a minor when the incident took place, was released earlier.

The two engineering students identified as Sarthak Wakchaure and Shruti Dumbre were found murdered at a secluded spot on a hilly area in Lonavla near INS Shivaji on April 2, 2017. According to the rural police, robbery was the motive behind the crime.

The police had recovered the bodies, both in their early 20s at that time and last year students of Sinhgad Engineering College, in Lonavla. The victims were found to have been hit on the back of their heads with a blunt object and their hands tied at the back.

In its order, the Principal District Judge Mahendra Mahajan observed discrepancies and contradictions in the case put up by the prosecution.

The court observed that the extra judicial confession made by the witness, who was a friend of the accused, was recorded two months after the incident and after the arrest of the accused

According to defence counsel Afroz Shaikh, the prosecution couldn’t prove the sketch of the accused. The prosecution had claimed that the arrested accused went to Ahmednagar after the incident wherein he could have easily disposed of the theft property. “However, nothing incriminating was recovered,” said Shaikh.

Following the incident, the Pune district police had formed multiple probe teams, but could not crack the case. An award of 50,000 was also announced for any information on the murder.

The accused, who were carrying a sharp weapon, had first forced the man to remove his cloths and later went after the woman. However, Wakchoure retaliated and a fight ensued. He was killed in the violent scuffle. They tied her hands with the help of the man’s cloths and bludgeoned her to death with a stone. After the incident, the accused walked away with two mobile phones of the victims and 1,000 cash. Police have recovered the phones from the accused.

rec-icon Recommended Topics
Share this article
See More
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Tuesday, February 11, 2025
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On