Pune: The prosecution on Monday opposed the bail pleas of six accused in the Porsche car crash case claiming these are influential persons and several key witnesses were afraid of them.
Investigating officer (IO) Ganesh Ingale told court the accused, like fugitive businessmen Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya, could flee the country if given bail.
Two IT professionals were killed on May 19 when their motorcycle was hit by a Porsche, allegedly driven by an inebriated minor, in Kalyani Nagar in Pune.
The six accused whose bail please are being heard are the minor’s parents Vishal and Shivani Agarwal, Sassoon General Hospital’s Dr Ajay Taware and Dr Shreehari Halnor as well as alleged middlemen Ashpak Makandar and Amar Gaikwad.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Ingale said the conspiracy to replace the blood samples of the minor was hatched at Irani Cafe in Wadgaonsheri area and accused Dr Ajay Taware was contacted and given allurement.
“Though Taware told other accused he would not come forward, the probe indicates Taware has a key role in the entire conspiracy,” he said, adding the conspiracy and crime took place in multiple places such as Irani Cafe, Sassoon General Hospital, Yerwada police station, the Juvenile Justice Board permises, Dr Halnor’s residential campus.
“Statements of the witnesses are being recorded from these places. The probe in the case is vast and we are trying to identify the other key witnesses. When the witnesses are called, they are afraid of coming to the investigating agency because of the background of the accused, which is high in stature,” Ingale told court.
The police was yet to record statements of six key witnesses, who are scared and would get further pressured if bail is given to the accused, the IO said.
Asserting the crime was such that it reduced the faith in the administrative and medical system, Ingale told court the accused replaced blood samples, tampered with the footage of the CCTV at the (Agarwal) bungalow and also tried to get the family’s driver to take blame in place of the minor.
The defence has contended the accused will not flee because of their stature and stake in property etc but Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya did so despite having high stature and stake in property, Ingale pointed out.
Taware has several complaints against his name, including a case related to kidney transplant, Ingale told court.
Special Public Prosecutor Shishir Hiray, while opposing the bail pleas, said Dr Halnor had approached the Medical Superintendent of Sassoon General Hospital before his arrest complaining that Dr Taware obtained the report regarding the blood samples from him.
He also told the court one of the drivers of Vishal Agarwal, who had given Rs 4 lakh to Ashpak Makandar and Amar Gaikwad to facilitate the blood sample swapping, has identified both the accused during the identification parade.
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