Chirag Pandya, a murder-accused, was arrested by the Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) on Tuesday after evading authorities by jumping parole. The arrest took place in Mangal Bazaar in Surat’s old city after the police received a tip-off regarding his whereabouts.
Pandya and his brother were accused of murdering a man in the Navabazaar area in September 2019 over a longstanding dispute. After his arrest, Pandya was sent to judicial custody at Lajpore Jail in Surat. He was granted parole for two days, from February 26 to February 27, to perform post-death rituals for his grandmother. However, Pandya failed to return to the jail after his parole ended, and a manhunt was launched to locate him.
The police revealed that 35-year-old Pandya has a lengthy criminal history, with 21 offences registered against him, including charges of murder, attempted murder, extortion, loot, rioting, and threatening, across various police stations in Surat.
