Firing at Salman Khan’s home: Accused stayed in Panvel for 21 days, last spotted at Mira Road, finds probe

The probe also found that the two wanted accused were last spotted at Mira Road around 6.15am, nearly an hour after the attack, following which they went off the police radar. The crime branch is now investigating if the accused took a train from there to head to another state and has sent teams to Bihar, Rajasthan and Delhi.

The investigators have also found that the two accused, after firing outside the actor’s residence, left their bike near Mount Mary church in Bandra and took a train from Bandra station. The duo got off at Santacruz station east side and took an autorickshaw. The accused took the Western Express Highway to escape from the city and went upto Mira Road where they were last seen.

An investigator measures a bullet mark after the firing. (Express photo: Sankhadeep Banerjee)

An officer said, “The two accused appear to be history-sheeters who kept changing modes of transport to ensure that they were not tracked.”

The Facebook post by Anmol Bishnoi, brother of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, in which he claimed responsibility for the attack, was uploaded from an IP address from Portugal, police said, adding that they are checking if VPN was used or it was actually uploaded from Portugal.

An officer said that they have recorded statements of two persons, including the bike owner and agent from Panvel, who sold the bike to the accused. An officer said that the duo was unaware of the motive of the buyers. The crime branch on Monday added section 120 (B) of the Indian Penal Code that stands for criminal conspiracy.

Security personnel check for bullet casings, at Salman Khan’s residence in Mumbai. (Express photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee.)

An FIR has been registered at the Bandra police station and the matter is being probed by the Mumbai crime branch. Khan, who has Y-plus category security cover, and his family members were present at home when the firing took place. However, no one was injured. The family members of the actor were upset that inspite of Y plus security, the accused could fire outside the residence and flee without getting caught.