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Thane: An accused in a murder case in Thane who was absconding for nine years has been arrested from Jharkhand, police said.

Rajesh alias Uttam Muneshwar Ravidas (34), an alleged contract killer and the main accused, was apprehended from Hazaribagh in Jharkhand on April 15, Mira Bhayander-Vasai Virar Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) Madan Ballal said on Monday, April 20.

On April 6, 2017, some unidentified persons shot dead Shamu Lahiri Goud (40) at Mira village under Kashimira police station limits in Maharashtra’s Thane district, he said, providing details of the case.

During the investigation, it was found that another accused, Sunilkumar Rajak, borrowed Rs 5 lakh from Goud in 2015 to secure bail in a previous murder case. As Goud was repeatedly demanding repayment, Rajak gave a contract of Rs 2 lakh to Ravidas to eliminate him, the official said.

“After accepting the contract, Rajesh Ravidas came to Mira Road from Jharkhand with a country-made pistol and three accomplices. After conducting a recce, they executed the murder,” Ballal said.

The Kashimira police subsequently registered a case under Sections 302 (murder), 120(B) (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Arms Act.

Two accused in the case were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by a Thane court last month, but Ravidas, who carried out the firing, had been absconding since the incident, the official said.

During the investigation, the police learned that he was hiding in Hazaribagh. Accordingly, a police team from here proceeded to Jharkhand and monitored the premises where he was staying before arresting him, he said.

The accused had earlier been arrested by the Talaiya police in Jharkhand in a case of murder, for which he allegedly took a contract of Rs 1.5 lakh, he added.