Man held in murder case; tried to pass himself off as victim

A 52-year-old Pune resident was arrested by police for allegedly killing a homeless man by setting him on fire and passing himself off as the deceased to evade repayment of a debt amounting to crores, an officer said on Monday.

The accused was identified as Mehboob Shaikh and the deceased as Sandip Mainkar, he said.

"We had found a half-burnt body of an unidentified man in an open space off Mumbai-Bengaluru highway near Baner on November 29. With the help of some chits found in his pocket, his identity was ascertained," said the officer from Hinjawadi police station.

He said the police were also investigating a complaint stating that one Mehboob Shaikh was missing.

"During the investigation, we found that Shaikh owed debt of crores and he had two wives. We tracked down Shaikh to Delhi, but he and his second wife had then left Delhi for Pune," he added.

He was finally traced in a train at Daund railway station in Pune district.

"Police found a stamp paper from Shaikh which stated that he was committing suicide due to debt and his body can be found in Baner area," the officer said.

During interrogation, Shaikh "confessed" to have killed Mainkar to evade repayment of the debt by projecting the half-burnt body as his own, he added.

"We have arrested Shaikh under various sections of the Indian Penal Code," he added. PTI SPK NSK NSK