Mumbai: Man absconding in kidnapping and rape case held after 40 years

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The Mumbai Police have arrested a man, who had been allegedly absconding in a kidnapping and rape case for the last 40 years, an official said on Tuesday.

The man was identified as Dawood Bandu Khan (70) alias Papa. He was held from Agra, the official said.

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Khan had been allegedly changing his identity to avoid arrest, he said.

According to the police, the DB Marg Police in south Mumbai conducted a special operation and apprehended him.

The police said that a rape case had been filed against Khan in 1984. In this case, Khan started being absent from the hearings at the Sessions Court. Eventually, the Sessions Court declared him a fugitive and issued a non-bailable warrant against him. Khan had been on the run for the last 40 years, and the case was pending in court.

In accordance with the election code of conduct, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone II, Mohit Kumar Garg initiated a special operation aimed at locating and apprehending wanted and absconding suspects who were listed in the police records. As part of this, a police team carried out a search for the suspect on his last known location at Falkland Road in Mumbai, but were unable to find him, the police said.

Further inquiries in the neighborhood revealed that Khan had sold his house on Falkland Road and relocated himself to somewhere in North India. Despite these leads, the police were unable to ascertain his current location.

Meanwhile, Police Constable Vinod Rane began questioning Khan's contacts. He found Khan's whereabouts from an informant. The information obtained was verified by the official and soon after a team was deputed to Agra in Uttar Pradesh.

"Under the guidance of Senior Police Inspector Vinay Ghorpade, Police Sub-Inspector Santosh Koyande, a team left for Agra. Surveillance was set up at the accused's residence in the Agra. After confirming the information using technical methods, a trap was laid in the area where Khan lived and he was arrested," an official said.

The police said that Khan has been brought to Mumbai on transit remand.

A police officer said, "Khan was involved in a business of gold melting. He had allegedly kidnapped a girl and raped her for which he was arrested then. Khan was later granted bail by the court, but after getting bail, he stopped attending the regular court hearings hence he was declared absconding.