6 more arrested in Rohit Shetty's house shooting case
What's the story
In connection with the shooting incident outside filmmaker Rohit Shetty's residence, six more suspects have been arrested from Rajasthan. The Mumbai Crime Branch is currently transporting them to the city, ANI reported on Monday morning. With these recent arrests, a total of 11 individuals have been apprehended in this case so far. The incident occurred on February 1 when assailants fired four rounds outside Shetty's residence. While four accused were nabbed soon after, one more individual was arrested later.
Legal proceedings
Defense advocate raised questions about weapon used in crime
Earlier, five accused were presented before a special Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) court last week. The court remanded them to police custody till Tuesday. After the invocation of MCOCA, defense advocate Ajinkya Mirgal raised questions about the weapon recovered from one of the accused, Swapnil Sakat. He said it was allegedly given to him by Praveen Lonkar, who has been in jail for over a year and a half for his involvement in Baba Siddique's murder case.
Investigation details
MCOCA invoked as organized crime network suspected
The Mumbai Police have invoked sections of the MCOCA, suspecting that an organized crime network is behind the attack on Shetty's residence. The police informed the court about a social media post that claimed responsibility for the incident. They also revealed that the accused communicated via the Signal app to maintain secrecy and are seeking additional deleted chats with Bishnoi gang member Shubham Lonkar. Notably, an account associated with Lonkar took responsibility for the attack.
Gang connections
Accused weapon supplier has links to Bishnoi gang
The Mumbai Crime Branch's investigation revealed that the accused weapon supplier, Asaram Fasle alias Babu, had been working as a garage mechanic for the Bishnoi gang for four years. He reportedly joined the gang under Shubham's influence. The Crime Branch alleges that Fasle supplied weapons to Sakat on Shubham's orders, which were later used in the shooting incident outside Shetty's residence.