NIA Makes Sachin Vaze Walk Near Antilia to Reconstruct Crime Scene

VIDEO EDITOR: ASHUTOSH BHARADWAJ
ENGLISH SCRIPT: HERA KHAN

Arrested Mumbai Police officer Sachin Vaze was taken outside Antilia late Friday, 19 March, to recreate the alleged scene of the crime, by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) as part of the ongoing investigation of the case of a car laden with explosives discovered near Mukesh Ambani’s residence.

The entire sequence of events captured from the CCTV outside the Ambani house was recreated by the NIA and a team from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Pune.

NIA IGP Anil Shukla led the crime scene reconstruction. The spot where the gelatin stick-laden Scorpio was found and the surrounding areas were marked by the agency. After that, the whole area was sealed. The NIA took the help of the Mumbai Police and recreated the entire scene in Vaze’s presence.

How Was the Crime Scene ‘Recreated’?

Firstly, Sachin Vaze was brought to Carmichael Road, where the car was recovered and was asked to walk wearing a shirt and a pair of pants. Vaze's movements were recorded with the CCTV resolution camera to check his gait, movement, timings, etc, to compare them with previously found footage from the spot.

After that, Vaze was asked to wear a kurta and tie a handkerchief on his head and made to walk three to four times. Pune’s forensic team recorded the entire scene and will then submit its investigation report.

According to sources in the NIA, the person seen in the CCTV footage, who carried out this whole incident could be Vaze himself. The NIA wants to confirm this by their investigation and present it in court.

Vaze has previously been taken to various other locations in Mumbai and Thane to recreate the entire set of circumstances culminating in the SUV imbroglio on 25 February. The NIA has till date seized around six high-end cars/SUVs, including two Mercedes, a Scorpio, an Innova and a Toyota LandCruiser Prado.

While some of these vehicles were used by Vaze, some were also driven by Thane businessman Mansukh Hiren, who was found dead in the Thane Creek wetlands on 5 March.

The NIA is probing the SUV case while the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad is investigating the Hiren death matter.

(With inputs from IANS.)