Incident so far:
Akshay Shinde , who was accused of sexual assault of two minor girls at a school in Badlapur town of Thane district. A contractual sweeper at the school in Badlapur, Akshay Shinde was arrested on August 17, five days after he allegedly sexually abused the two girls in the school toilet. He was killed near Mumbra Bypass in Thane on Monday evening when he allegedly snatched the gun of a policeman while he was being ferried in a police vehicle as part of a probe into a case registered against him on the complaint of his former wife, an official earlier said.
Circumstances that led to encounter
After he shot and injured an assistant police inspector, another officer from the police escort team fired at him, and he was declared dead by doctors at the Kalwa civic hospital, the official said. Akshay Shinde was being transported to Badlapur from Taloja jail for investigation. In the firing, Sanjay Shinde and assistant police inspector Nilesh More were injured. India Today reported that Sanjay Shinde had previously worked with the anti-extortion cell of the Thane Police Crime Branch, then headed by Pradeep Sharma. He was part of the team which arrested gangster Dawood Ibrahim‘s brother Iqbal Kaskar.
Encounter specialist:
Pradeep Sharma earned a reputation as an ‘encounter specialist’ in the Mumbai Police, credited with neutralising more than 100 criminals throughout his career. Having joined the force in 1983, Pradeep Sharma gained prominence in the 1990s for his role in high-profile encounters against members of the Mumbai underworld, particularly those linked to the Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Rajan gangs.
CID to investigate killing of Badlapur sexual assault case accused
Maharashtra’s Crime Investigation Department (CID) will conduct a probe into the death of Akshay Shinde, news agency PTI reported. A team of forensic science experts on Tuesday examined the police vehicle, in which Akshay Shinde was allegedly shot by the cop. As the incident is concerning death in police custody, it will be investigated by the Maharashtra CID, a senior official said on Tuesday.
A team of CID officials will visit the spot at Mumbra bypass where the incident took place, he said, adding they will also record statements of police personnel who were in the vehicle at that time. A team of forensic science experts on Tuesday examined the police vehicle, in which Akshay Shinde was allegedly shot by the cop.
