Thane: A petty dispute over using a friend’s mobile phone and not returning it on time allegedly turned fatal for a 50-year-old man in Mumbra who his friend and his three associates fatally assaulted, the police said on Sunday.
Following instructions from Balasaheb Patil, DCP, Zone-1, Thane police, three teams were formed to track the accused, of which the team led by Assistant Police Inspector Vinayak Mane traced and apprehended the accused from different locations within an hour. The accused were arrested within an hour of the murder being reported. The injured victim was rushed to the Kalwa municipal hospital where he succumbed to his injuries following which a police complaint was registered. “We have seized the stick and belt used in the assault. Further investigations are underway,” informed senior inspector Ganesh Jawadwad at the Mumbra police station.
A murder case was registered, and the accused was presented before the court, which sent them to police custody.
The victim, Iliyas Qureshi alias Salim, a resident of Jivan Baug, had taken the mobile handset of his friend Parmeshwar Andagale, apparently without his knowledge, a few days back. After Andagale demanded its return, Salim allegedly refused. This led to an argument between them, following which the accused, along with his three friends, accosted Salim near Mumbra railway station last week and assaulted him with sticks and a belt.