19 October,2024 07:30 PM IST | Mumbai | Apoorva Agashe
Five more suspects were arrested by crime branch on Friday. File Pic
The Mumbai Crime Branch has intensified its probe into the Baba Siddique murder case and recorded more statements, the officials said on Saturday.
The crime branch recorded statements of around 20-25 people in the Baba Siddique murder case. The police are yet to record the statements of Zeeshan Siddique and other family members of the former Maharashtra minister and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP leader.
According to the police, absconding accused Zeeshan Akhtar and Shubham Lonkar are the main pillars of the conspiracy, and they gathered 9 people to conduct reconnaissance, shoot, and supply arms to commit the crime.
According to the crime branch, two of the five accused arrested on October 18 had conducted reconnaissance at Baba Siddiqui's residence and office.
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"All these 9 accused were in touch with each other and were part of the same group. The group received Rs 5 lakh to commit the crime," the police said.
On October 18, the police arrested Nitin Gautam Sapre (32), Sambaji Parbi (44), Ram Kanojiya (43), Pradeep Thombar (37), and Chetan Parsi (33). "Somnath Pardhi was killed in 2015. Nitin Sapre and Sambaji Parbi were involved in the killing of Somnath. They were out on bail in 2017. They were launched in Kalyan Jail and knew each other," Mumbai Police said.
The police are also investigating the source of the 3 firearms used by the accused. They have issued a lookout circular against Zeeshan Akhtar and Shivkumar Gautam and have previously issued an LOC against Shubham Lonkar.
Meanwhile, in a post on X on Zeeshan Siddique wrote, "Cowards often frighten the brave, Even jackals kill lions by deceit."
Earlier, in a first reaction after his father Baba Siddique's murder, Bandra east MLA Zeeshan Siddique had on Thursday said that his father lost his life while protecting the lives and homes of the poor, hinting at the possible motive behind the killing of Ajit Pawar-led NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister.
