Times News NetworkSurat: A 60-year-old ragpicker was allegedly bludgeoned to death over a Rs 2,000 loan in Jahangirpura area, with police arresting the accused after a forensic postmortem revealed the death was a murder.The victim, Babu Sawant, was found critically injured near Saroli check post on June 20 by a passerby, who alerted the 108 ambulance service around 8am. Sawant was shifted to Civil Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries in the afternoon. Initially treated as an accidental death, the case took a turn after the forensic postmortem report indicated that he had died from head injuries inflicted with a blunt object.Assistant commissioner of police Milan Modi said, “The postmortem report suggested death due to a head injury caused by a blunt object, following which we intensified the investigation. CCTV footage from establishments near the crime scene showed an unidentified man repeatedly assaulting the victim with an object. Based on the footage, our teams traced and arrested the accused, Kishor Patel (55), who is also a ragpicker.”During interrogation, Patel allegedly confessed that he had lent Rs 2,000 to Sawant. An argument over the unpaid amount escalated into a violent assault, resulting in Sawant’s death.Police said CCTV footage from a shop near the crime scene captured Patel brutally assaulting Sawant at around 3am on June 20. The footage became the key piece of evidence that helped investigators identify and arrest the accused.
