Bunty Jahagirdar murder: Custody of all 4 accused extended till Jan 9; bike used in crime recovered

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Ahilyanagar district police on Tuesday secured a further three-day extension of custody of all four accused arrested in the murder of Aslam Shabbir Sheikh alias Bunty Jahagirdar (53), who was one of the accused in the 2012 Pune JM Road serial bomb blasts case.The police on Tuesday submitted before the court that the motorcycle used in the crime was recovered and key aspects of the case, including the motive, are yet to be established.The complainant, Jahagirdar's cousin and councillor Raees Abdulgani Sheikh, alleged that the killing was a well-planned conspiracy involving several persons. Police registered the case under sections 103, 109 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with provisions of the Arms Act, and said further arrests cannot be ruled out as the probe progresses.The 2 alleged shooters in the case were arrested on January 1, while the other 2 accused, who police said acted as "watchers", were arrested on Jan 3.On completion of their respective police custody periods, all 4 were produced before the judicial magistrate first class (JMFC), Shrirampur, through video conferencing on Tuesday. Accepting the prosecution's plea, the court extended their police custody by 3 days, till Jan 9.Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Jaydatta Bhawar told TOI that investigators made a crucial logistical recovery. "We recovered the bike used in the crime. At present, we are working to ascertain the motive behind the murder and also to find out whether others are involved. So far, the arrested accused are trying to mislead the investigation by giving different versions of the story," Bhawar said.Police said the seized motorcycle is suspected to have been used during reconnaissance and for movement before and after the shooting. The vehicle will undergo forensic examination to check for fingerprints, trace evidence and other material that could help corroborate the sequence reconstructed by investigators.It was on the afternoon of January 31, Jahagirdar was shot dead near St Luke's Hospital in Shrirampur while returning home from a graveyard. Police earlier informed the court that the shooters used 2 foreign-made pistols of different calibres, while the other 2 accused allegedly tracked Jahagirdar's movements and relayed real-time location updates.Investigators are also continuing technical analysis of multiple mobile phones and SIM cards seized from the accused. "Call data records and location mapping will play a key role in establishing the conspiracy and fixing individual roles," said an officer privy to the probe.