Thane, Oct 5 A Thane court on Monday extended the police custody of Satish alias Pappya Shinde, main accused in the murder of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Pradeep Purnekar, till October 9.
Police told court Shinde was refusing to cooperate with the investigation.
Purnekar was murdered inside his Manpada office at around 9:30pm on September 29. Shinde is accused of pinning down Purnekar while the assailants shot at him and also assaulted him with sharp weapons.
Producing Shinde in court, police sought an extension of remand stating that firearms and murder weapons are yet to be recovered. Police also told court the mobile phones used by the accused were registered under fictitious names.
The prosecution team, led by Advocate Sameer Hatle, submitted CCTV evidence revealing that the perpetrators conducted extensive recce of Purnekar's movements and schedule. While the attackers initially fled on a two-wheeler, CCTV footage subsequently caught them escaping in an Alto car.
Investigations further uncovered over 150 phone calls exchanged among the co-conspirators before and after the murder, necessitating further time to map their movements and unravel the plot.
Challenging the remand, defence counsel Advocate Sangram Shinde argued that Pappya Shinde did not flee the scene and his only act was helping transport Purnekar's body to the hospital.
The defence raised doubts over the probe, questioning whether police had investigated former Mayor Meenakshi Shinde and Rajendra Shinde, whose names surfaced in supplementary statements. The former mayor has denied allegations against her.
Police also arrested two more persons in the case. An official identified the duo as Nitesh Pawar and Nikhil Yadav, who were hiding in a dairy in Alibaug in neighbouring Raigad district.
Prime suspects Santosh Kanojia alias Talli and a helmet-wearing motorcyclist remain at large and efforts are on to nab them, the official added.
