Biz rivalry likely motive behind shootout: Cops
SHOOTOUT AT ARIHANT OFFICE
Rival eyeing project at Kurla’s Priyadarshini Park could be responsible.
Friday’s shootout targeting the son of a prominent city builder has managed to get the Mumbai crime branch on its toes as they are exploring all possible angles to nail the motive behind this daring criminal act, especially the competition surrounding a project at Kurla’s Priyadarshini Park. But, the police are of the opinion that the motive of the shootout was to scare the builder away and not to kill. Arihant Infrastructure owner Roopchand Jain’s son, Jinesh Roopchand Jain, 32, was shot at by two burqa-clad men who managed to enter Jinesh’s office on Friday evening. The shooters missed hit Jinesh on his shoulder, while one bullet grazed his lips.
Jain, who is originally a jeweller, runs Arihant Infrastructure, and is also a partner in three more construction companies run by the same group. On Friday, he carried out a private survey for the project to be developed around Kurla’s Priyadarshini Park. The project has been eyed by three more construction companies and a developer from one of those companies had threatened Jain.
However, police have not overruled the extortion angle and are also probing the possibility of a personal rivalry.
“Prima facie, it seems like the shooters were not part of any gang and it is more likely that the attack was due to rivalry and not for extortion. If one sees the CCTV video, one can make out that if the shooters wanted to kill, they would have shot Jinesh when he was standing at the reception desk with three of his employees right before the assailants started shooting. The assailants, after entering the building, threatened the people in the office with their pistols and then told them to go inside,” said a senior police officer.
“The assailants started shooting only when all the people who were present in the office went inside. Jinesh was the last to go inside and was hurt when the shots were fired. If they were professional shooters, they would have shot him when he was within a closer range. They are seen shooting in various directions and it seems the attack has been carried out to terrorise or scare them,” the police officer added. Jinesh is presently out of danger but is still unconscious. According to the footage recorded by the CCTV cameras, the assailants were familiar with the office and the police are suspecting that they must have conducted drills to rehearse the shootout. This has made the police inspect CCTV footage from the last few days to identify any unknown person who might have visited the office.
“We are probing all possible angles and the dispute related to a property being developed by the developer is one of them. We have put three units of the crime branch to investigate the case and are expecting that the accused will be nabbed soon,” said Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime, Atulchandra Kulkarni, from Mumbai crime branch.
Rival eyeing project at Kurla’s Priyadarshini Park could be responsible.
Friday’s shootout targeting the son of a prominent city builder has managed to get the Mumbai crime branch on its toes as they are exploring all possible angles to nail the motive behind this daring criminal act, especially the competition surrounding a project at Kurla’s Priyadarshini Park. But, the police are of the opinion that the motive of the shootout was to scare the builder away and not to kill. Arihant Infrastructure owner Roopchand Jain’s son, Jinesh Roopchand Jain, 32, was shot at by two burqa-clad men who managed to enter Jinesh’s office on Friday evening. The shooters missed hit Jinesh on his shoulder, while one bullet grazed his lips.
The police have not ruled out any possibility but have pegged a business agenda at number one.
Jain, who is originally a jeweller, runs Arihant Infrastructure, and is also a partner in three more construction companies run by the same group. On Friday, he carried out a private survey for the project to be developed around Kurla’s Priyadarshini Park. The project has been eyed by three more construction companies and a developer from one of those companies had threatened Jain.
However, police have not overruled the extortion angle and are also probing the possibility of a personal rivalry.
“Prima facie, it seems like the shooters were not part of any gang and it is more likely that the attack was due to rivalry and not for extortion. If one sees the CCTV video, one can make out that if the shooters wanted to kill, they would have shot Jinesh when he was standing at the reception desk with three of his employees right before the assailants started shooting. The assailants, after entering the building, threatened the people in the office with their pistols and then told them to go inside,” said a senior police officer.
“The assailants started shooting only when all the people who were present in the office went inside. Jinesh was the last to go inside and was hurt when the shots were fired. If they were professional shooters, they would have shot him when he was within a closer range. They are seen shooting in various directions and it seems the attack has been carried out to terrorise or scare them,” the police officer added. Jinesh is presently out of danger but is still unconscious. According to the footage recorded by the CCTV cameras, the assailants were familiar with the office and the police are suspecting that they must have conducted drills to rehearse the shootout. This has made the police inspect CCTV footage from the last few days to identify any unknown person who might have visited the office.
“We are probing all possible angles and the dispute related to a property being developed by the developer is one of them. We have put three units of the crime branch to investigate the case and are expecting that the accused will be nabbed soon,” said Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime, Atulchandra Kulkarni, from Mumbai crime branch.
