Senior citizen found dead in car, Pune police suspect murder

The body of a 73-year-old man was found inside a parked car with injury marks, said police. The incident was reported between 8:30 am on Friday and 12 noon on Saturday at Sangrun in the Haveli area.

The deceased has been identified as Narayan alias Nana Pandurang Mankar, a resident of Lokesh Society Bibwewadi.

The deceased owned agricultural land, which he gave to a man named Satish Khadke for ‘Batai’ purposes (to cultivate and share income). On Friday, Satish met Mankar in Bibwewadi and brought him to the farm to complete some land levelling-related work.

Police investigation revealed that both accused and victim observed work on the farm. Later the victim did not return home. On Saturday, with the help of locals, police recovered the body in the car.

Mohan Khandare, senior police inspector, said, “We have found injury marks on the throat and head. It seems that by using sharp weapons the accused was killed. Gold ornaments of the deceased are also missing.’’

According to Khandare, prima facie it seems that somebody with an intention of theft and robbery may have killed the deceased. “We are also exploring other angles related to the case,” said Khandare.

Police are also on the lookout for Khadke with whom the deceased was last seen.

“We are treating this as a murder case based on the visible injuries. Further investigation is underway to determine the motive and identify the assailant,” said Khandare.

The body has been sent for post-mortem, and police are examining CCTV footage and speaking to residents in the area to gather leads.

A case has been filed at Uttam Nagar police station under sections 103(1), 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).