Crime Files | How worn-out shoes led Pune Rural Police to nab a young woman’s killer

“It was a pair of canvas shoes and had become very loose possibly by overuse. We got a critical lead from a confidential informant about a man who was seen wearing that particular pair of shoes in the area. We started gathering information on this man, closely monitored his movement over the past few days. In one of the CCTV camera footage, the man was seen wearing the same pair of shoes. On a couple of occasion, this suspect tried to give our teams a slip, possibly after spotting them from a distance. Our team soon detained him for questioning and soon became clear, it was him who had attacked and murdered the victim. We charged him for murder and arrested him,” said a police officer who was part of the probe.

The accused was identified as Dinesh Sanjay Patole (26), a resident of Gole Vasti in Uruli Kanchan. Patole worked as a mechanic at a local auto repair garage. Accused and victim did not have any previous direct contact, probe revealed.

“Investigation revealed that sometime before victim’s body was discovered, she was walking alone on the street. As Patole saw her, he started following her. As he tried to make advances towards her, she rejected his advances.
Accused them grabbed her and gagged her. He dragged her behind bushes on the roadside. As the victim started scream and resisting, he bludgeoned her to death. As the victim resisted, the accused lost his shoes in the scuffle as they had become loose from overuse. He then fled from the scene.” an officer who was part of the probe said.

Since his arrest in the third week of October last year and subsequent police remand, Patole has been in prison in judicial custody. He has been chargesheeted, officials said.