Surat: A 35-year-old accused wanted in connection with a 2014 murder-cum-robbery case registered at Hazira police station was arrested in Maharashtra’s Shahada by the Prevention of Crime Branch (PCB) police on Sunday.PCB police inspector R S Suvera told TOI that the accused, Viresh Sharma, a native of Deoria in Uttar Pradesh, had been evading arrest for nearly 12 years. “Based on human and technical surveillance, he was traced to an Indian Oil petrol pump at Mohide Haveli in Shahada, where he had been working. After verifying the details, our team nabbed him,” Suvera said.The case relates to the alleged robbery of a truck carrying plastic granules worth around Rs 19.93 lakh. The truck itself was valued at approximately Rs 7 lakh, taking the total value of the alleged booty to around Rs 26.93 lakh. The incident took place near gate 1 of Reliance Industries in Hazira.According to police, Sharma and his associates—Vijay Yadav, Ramnaresh Vishwakarma, Sarvesh Yadav and Lalla Benwanshi—intercepted the truck. The driver was allegedly killed during the incident and his body was dumped in a drain beneath the Sachin overbridge.Police said the truck was later abandoned near Colourtex company in Sachin.
