In the unfolding saga of the Porsche calamity in Pune, law enforcement officials on Tuesday, May 28, impounded a Mercedes vehicle linked to the family of the juvenile implicated in the mishap. This automobile was purportedly utilized in the abduction of the chauffeur, Gangadhar Herikrub, as part of a scheme to compel him to assume culpability for the tragic accident on May 19 that claimed the lives of two engineers.
Gangadhar Herikrub, aged 42, a resident of Kesnand in Pune and originally from Gulbarga in Karnataka, lodged a First Information Report (FIR) with the police. In his statement, he recounted how the minor’s grandfather coerced him into the car while he was en route home from the Yerwada police station, where he had been interrogated concerning the Porsche incident.
Upon arrival at their residence, Herikrub alleged that the grandfather and father of the minor confiscated his mobile phone and detained him. Subsequently, they exerted pressure on him to falsely confess to being responsible for the Porsche accident.
The Pune police apprised the judiciary that the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, valued at approximately Rs 40 lakh and donned in dolomite brown, was scrutinized as it was instrumental in the driver’s abduction. “The two suspects are reticent in divulging particulars about the offense; hence, their remand is imperative for a thorough interrogation,” the police conveyed to the court.
Suspicions of CCTV Manipulation
Authorities revealed that preliminary scrutiny of the CCTV footage retrieved from the suspects’ domicile indicated tampering. “We necessitate interrogating the suspects about the manipulation and ascertaining if there are additional accomplices in the falsification of evidence,” the police stated.
The minor’s grandfather refuted the abduction allegations, asserting his presence in Delhi during the incident and his subsequent travel to Pune upon learning of the Porsche mishap.
The investigating officer appeared in Pune court alongside the minor accused’s father and grandfather, petitioning for a week’s police custody to probe the kidnapping and unlawful confinement allegations against the family’s driver. The court sanctioned their remand until May 31.
