Navi Mumbai: Man strangles girlfriend and jumps to his death

Cops search for bodies along with local fishermen

A 22-year-old man, Swastik Patil, who died by suicide after jumping into a creek in Belapur, was found on Friday after a two-day search. According to the police, Patil jumped into the creek after killing his girlfriend, 19-year-old Bhavika More on Wednesday. His body was discovered in the Belapur bay, and the search involved police, local authorities, and local fishermen.

Swastik Patil, who worked at a medical store in Panvel, was originally from Kelwane Village in Uran but was residing in Panvel at the time. Bhavika More was a resident of Seawoods in Navi Mumbai.

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"During the investigation, it was found that Bhavika and Swastik had been in contact for two years but had stopped speaking about four months ago due to an argument. Bhavika was hesitant to meet Swastik, though he continued to reach out," said a police officer.

The police reported that around 4.30 pm on Wednesday, they received a call from a local fisherman about the discovery of a girl's dead body. The caller also mentioned that a boy had jumped into the creek from a bridge. Police officers arrived at the scene near DPS Lake in Seawood, where they found the girl's body. She was taken to a hospital, where doctors confirmed that she had been strangled and assaulted.

"The police, along with local fishermen who witnessed the incident, immediately launched a search operation for the missing man who had jumped into the creek. After two days of searching, Patil's body was finally found near the creek," said a police official.

Satish Kadam, senior police inspector at NRI police station, confirmed that a murder case has been registered against Patil, and the investigation is ongoing. "The boy's body was found near the creek and has been sent to Vashi hospital for further procedures," Kadam added, noting that the motive behind the killing and suicide remains unclear.

Meanwhile, the police have begun questioning the friends and relatives of both the deceased. During the investigation, it was revealed that on Wednesday, Swastik called Bhavika, asking to meet her for just five minutes. Around 4 pm, the two of them went to the bay shore near DPS Lake in Seawoods on a two-wheeler. "They got into another argument there, which escalated. In the heat of the moment, Swastik strangled Bhavika and hit her head. Fishermen in the creek witnessed the incident and found Bhavika's body floating in the water. They also saw Swastik jump into the creek afterward," said a police officer.

However, Swastik's body could not be located on the same day due to the high tide in the creek. Finally, on Friday morning, his body washed ashore near the creek adjacent to the NRI Colony and was taken into custody by the police.

After Swastik's relatives identified the body, it was sent for post-mortem. Later that evening, the police handed his body over to his relatives for the last rites.

4.30
Time around which incident happened on Wednesday