BMW hit-and-run case: 24-yr-old admits to driving vehicle at time of accident, say cops

Mumbai: Mihir Shah, the prime accused in the Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case, has told the police he was driving the car at the time of the crash which killed a woman and injured her husband, officials said citing the probe carried out so far.

After crashing into the couple's scooter in the early hours of Sunday, Shah was very much aware that the woman was stuck in one of the tyres of the luxury car, but still, he drove recklessly and did not stop though motorists passing by frantically signalled and shouted, asking him to halt, an official said on Wednesday.

To conceal his identity, Shah shaved his beard and trimmed his hair, the official said, adding they were trying to find out if anyone helped him in changing his appearance.

The 24-year-old accused, who is in police custody till July 16, has claimed he possesses a driving licence, but the document was yet to be recovered, he said.

So far, the statements of 14 persons, including Mihir Shah's mother, sisters and friends, have been recorded, the official said.

The police are likely to visit the crash spot in the Worli area of south-central Mumbai and re-construct the entire crime scene as part of their investigation, he said.

Mihir Shah's father Rajesh Shah, a Shiv Sena politician from the adjoining Palghar district, is also an accused in the case and is currently out on bail.

Police arrested Mihir Shah on Tuesday from the neighbouring Thane district, two days after he allegedly rammed his BMW car into a two-wheeler, killing Kaveri Nakhwa (45), who was riding pillion, and injuring her husband Pradeep.

The horrific accident was captured in CCTV cameras of the police installed at Mela Junction and Bindu Madhav Thackeray Chowk in Worli.

After crossing the Bindu Madhav Thackeray Chowk, other motorists asked Mihir Shah to stop the car, but he did not listen to them and continued driving, according to the official.

During interrogation, the accused, whose family chauffeur was sitting beside him, admitted he was behind the wheel at the time of the crash but did not tell the police from which point he started driving and when, he said.

Mihir Shah is not cooperating in the investigation, as per the official. The police have booked him for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among other charges.

After the accident, the prime accused, his family members, who stay in Mumbai's Borivali area, and his grandfather, who resides in Palghar, left their respective homes and remained untraceable.

The police will bring Rajrishi Bidawat, the family chauffeur, and Mihir Shah face to face to get more information about the crash and to know the entire sequence of events, the official said. Bidawat, who was accompanying Mihir Shah at the time of the crash, is also an accused in the case.