PUNE: After 48 hours of intensive search, Pune police arrested a man who allegedly raped a 26-year-old woman inside a bus at Pune's Swargate bus station on Friday.
Gade (37), a history-sheeter, allegedly raped the woman inside an ST bus in the early hours of Tuesday.
According to the police, the accused had visited a relative's house in Shirur, Pune district. He confessed to his relative that he had made a mistake and wanted to surrender to the police. However, he went absconding.
The relative later informed the police about Gade's whereabouts, the police said.
The accused, Dat, was apprehended from a paddy field following an extensive search operation with the help of drones and sniffer dogs around midnight in Shirur tehsil.
“The police, with the help of a dog squad and drones apprehended him from a paddy field," a police official said.
Pune police have said a ligature mark was found on the accused's neck, raising suspicion that he might have attempted suicide.
A senior police officer said, "Gade was brought to Pune by 2 am. He was sent for a medical examination and formally arrested. The accused will be produced in court later in the day."
According to sources, the accused switched off his mobile phone, but the police managed to reach his village and found out he had visited a house requesting water.
" We received information that Gade had visited a house asking for food. We rushed to the spot, but he managed to flee. The family in the house gave him a bottle of water," the official said.
Talking to reporters, Pune police commissioner Amitesh Kumar said, "According to the primary medical report, a ligature mark was found on the accused. It is suspected that he attempted suicide. We are waiting for the final report."
On Thursday, the Pune police had announced a reward of ₹1 lakh for any information leading to the arrest of 37-year-old Dattatray Gade.
To track down the accused, the Pune police had formed 13 teams—eight from the Crime Branch and five from the Swargate Police Station, working on the ground.
Police sources mentioned that Gade had managed to slip through the dragnet thrown around the city by hiding in a truck carrying vegetables.
The woman, who was waiting at the Swargate bus depot to board a bus to her hometown in Satara district early on Tuesday, was approached by Gade. He told her that her bus would not arrive at the current platform but at another one, and persuaded her to board a particular bus, which was empty. The incident occurred just 100 metres from a police station.
Gade, 36, has a prior criminal record. He is facing charges in at least six cases of theft, robbery, and chain-snatching in Pune and the neighbouring Ahilya Nagar district. He has been out on bail since 2019.
(With inputs from PTI)