Pune Porsche accident: Police arrest teen's mother for swapping blood samples
Pune Porsche car crash: The minor ploughed his swanky luxury car into two IT professionals, who were travelling on a bike, killing them on the spot on the night of May 19. The accused has been detained at an observation home on the order of the Juvenile Justice Board.
Pune Porsche accident: Pune Police have arrested Shivani Agarwal, the mother of the 17-year-old accused, in the Porsche car accident case after confirmation that his blood samples were replaced with those of his mother, said Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar on Saturday.
The mother of the minor accused will be produced before the court today. She has been arrested in connection with the blood sample manipulation case which is being probed by the Crime Branch.
While the 17-year-old minor has been sent to an observation home, his father, realtor Vishal Agarwal and grandfather Surendra Agarwal have been arrested for allegedly kidnapping the family's driver and putting pressure on him to take the blame.
Kumar said the accident investigation has revealed that the juvenile's blood samples were replaced with those of his mother. Police had told a local court two days ago that the blood samples of the juvenile were exchanged with those of a woman.
Mother allegedly swapped blood sample
The blood sample of the minor accused in the Pune luxury car accident case was swapped with that of a woman, and a total of three suspects, including the accused's mother, are under the police scanner for the crime, officials said on May 30. A senior official with Pune Police said that there are three suspects, including the accused teenager's mother, who are under their scanner for their alleged involvement in swapping blood samples with the minor accused.
Pune Police officials also confirmed that they haven't established any contact with the mother of the accused, and will do so as and when required. Earlier, the police had confirmed that the doctors at Sassoon Hospital had replaced the blood sample of the juvenile accused in the luxury car crash with another one and threw the real sample in the hospital's dustbin. The police have seized several DVRs of the CCTV footage from Sassoon Hospital, and the scrutiny of the CCTV footage is underway to find out who was present when the blood samples were taken.
Doctors arrested in the case
Earlier in the day two doctors, Dr. Shrihari Harnor and Dr. Ajay Taware, along with Atul Ghatkamble, an employee of the Hospital were remanded in police custody till May 30 by the court of Judicial Magistrate First Class (small causes) A A Pande. Two doctors and a staffer from Sassoon General Hospital were arrested for allegedly manipulating the teenager’s blood samples to show that he was not drunk at the time of the accident.
The Police suspect financial transactions in the form of 'kickbacks' had taken place in the alleged replacement of the original blood sample of the juvenile driver involved in the Porsche car crash with another person's sample by the two doctors.
The prosecution said that the juvenile's father had called one of the doctors and asked him to change the samples, adding that police wanted to investigate who else had given the instructions to manipulate the samples.
New sections added in juvenile's case
Meanwhile, police have added sections 201, 120-B, 467, 213 and 214 of the IPC to the original offences, sections 304, 304 A, 279 and relevant sections of the Motor Vehicle Act, registered against the juvenile.
The latest added sections pertain to charges of causing the disappearance of evidence, criminal conspiracy, forgery of valuable security, taking a gift, etc, to screen an offender from punishment, and offering a gift or restoration of property in consideration of screening the offender, respectively.
What is the case?
Notably, two IT professionals died after their motorcycle was hit by a speeding Porsche allegedly driven by the drunk minor in the early hours of May 19.
The teenager was initially granted bail by the Juvenile Justice Board, which also asked him to write an essay on road accidents. But after the public outcry over the lenient treatment and a review application by the police, he was sent to an observation home till June 5. The crime branch is currently probing the case.
The police have arrested the teenager's father, who is a realtor, and his grandfather in connection with the accident.
(With agencies input)
Also Read: Pune Porsche accident: Juvenile Justice Board allows cops to probe minor accused