Baba Siddique killing: 4 more held in Pune, 1 in Haryana

MUMBAI/PUNE: The Mumbai crime branch has arrested a 29-year-old man from Kaithal in Haryana and three youths from Pune in connection with the ongoing investigation into NCP politician Baba Siddique ’s murder on October 12. Another youth from Pune was detained and was being questioned, taking the total arrests to 14.

The Haryana man, Amit Hisamsingh Kumar , allegedly gave shelter to absconding accused Zeeshan Akhtar , who is suspected of playing a key role in hiring the killers, as well as facilitated communication between him and the three alleged shooters. A police officer said the three youths — Rupesh Rajendra Mohol (22) of Shivane and Karan Rahul Salve (19) and Shivam Arvind Kohad (20) of Uttamnagar — were said to be close to Shubham Lonkar , the ‘recruit’ of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi who had claimed responsibility for the murder on behalf of the gang, and are being investigated for their roles in the conspiracy. “All four youths did odd jobs in Pune city.” Singh and another suspected shooter, Dharmaraj Kashyap , were caught near the crime spot soon after the murder. Gautam, considered the primary shooter, is on the run.