Mumbai BMW Case: 11 Teams Formed To Nab Accused; Father Visited Accident Spot, Says Cops

Mumbai: In the Worli hit and run case, the Mumbai police has formed 11 teams and roped in the Crime Branch to nab 24-year-old accused Mihir Shah, who crashed his BMW car into a scooter, killing a woman and injuring her husband. Confirming the report, an official stated that a Look Out Circular (LOC) has also been put out against the accused, son of Rajesh Shah, a Shiv Sena leader from neighbouring Palghar district. 

According to the police, the accused fatally knocked down a woman identified as Kaveri Nakhwa (45) with his BMW car and injured her husband Pradeep in Mumbai’s Worli area. A CCTV footage of the incident also surfaced, wherein the deceased was captured being dragged by the car for around 1.5 kilometers. The footage also showed Mihir Shah and co-accused Rajrishi Bidawat pulling the woman off the bonnet and placing her on the road before mowing her down again while reversing the vehicle.

Police is Searching For The Accused Several States

Reports suggest that following the incident, Mihir Shah took the car to Kalanagar in Bandra, abandoned the vehicle in the presence of Bidawat, took another car, and fled to Borivali in the northern tip of the metropolis, as per the statement given by the police. "He went to the residence of his female friend and has been untraceable since then. He switched off his mobile phone in Borivali area. Considering the possibility of him fleeing Maharashtra, the police teams have been sent to nearby states, including Gujarat," the official said.

Police have also visited his residence in Palghar but it was locked, the official added. As per the investigation so far, Mihir was partying with four friends in a bar in Juhu till the early hours of Sunday, after which he and his driver proceeded towards south Mumbai. The police also found out the bar bill of Rs 18,000 and are verifying it, while CCTV footage of the bar is also being examined.

"After the accident, Mihir's father and co-accused Rajesh Shah came to the spot within one-and-half hours. He was at the spot at around 6.45 am. The hit-and-run incident took place at 5.30 am. Rajesh Shah has been booked for allegedly providing misinformation and destruction of evidence," the official said.

Rajesh Shah and Bidawat were produced in the court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate SP Bhosale earlier in the day and were remanded to 14-day judicial and one-day police custody, respectively. However, Rajesh Shah was later granted bail by the court. 

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena head Eknath Shinde asserted that no one would be spared in the case. "No one, whether rich, influential or the offspring of bureaucrats or ministers, affiliated with any party, will have immunity as long as I am the chief minister,” he said.

Handle Cases With Utmost Seriousness: Eknath Shinde Instructs Police

In a statement, Shinde said he has asked police to handle hit-and-run incidents involving powerful and influential persons with seriousness and ensure justice is served. The Maharashtra CM stated that he was deeply alarmed by the rise in hit-and-run incidents in the state. "It is intolerable that the powerful and influential misuse their status to manipulate the system. Such miscarriages of justice will not be tolerated by my government," he added.

Shinde further said, “The lives of ordinary citizens are precious to us. I have directed the state police department to handle these cases with the utmost seriousness and ensure justice is served. We are implementing stricter laws with harsher penalties for hit-and-run offenders."

Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray, who represents the Worli assembly constituency, in a post on X (formally Twitter) on Sunday said, "I will not go into the political leanings of Shah, the accused of the hit and run, but I hope the police will act swiftly to catch the accused and bring him to justice. Hopefully, there will be no political refuge by the regime.”