Nagpur: Notorious criminal Rushi Puttewar, wanted in the murder of two fruit vendors in Sakkardara, was arrested from Hinjewadi in Pune on Thursday. Puttewar was on the run for the last 22 days.Puttewar and aides killed Aditya Bandve and Aditya Rahulkar in Sakkardara Market on June 10 over a monetary dispute. Police had arrested four people accused of committing the brutal crime, but Puttewar managed to flee the city.A phone call seeking money from an associate proved Puttewar’s undoing as it helped cops zero down on his location in Pune. After committing the murder, Puttewar went underground and started using a new sim card and handset. He maintained minimal contact with his aides.During the interrogation, one of the accused spilled the beans on Puttewar’s new phone number. When Puttewar used it again, his location was traced to Hinjewadi in Pune. A Sakkardara police team led by sub-inspector Mahesh Pandey and guided by senior inspector Ramesh Khune, combed through different areas of Hinjewadi. After a 10-hour search operation, Puttewar was traced to an area populated by migrant labourers and workers.In the past, Puttewar was arrested in connection with two more murders, including that of businessman Rishi Khosla in 2019. Arresting him was among the top priorities of CP Vishwas Nangre Patil.“He managed to evade arrest but not for long. Getting the info about his new sim proved vital,” said zonal DCP Rashmitha Rao.Police are now interrogating Puttewar to probe if the wage dispute was merely a trigger for a deeper conspiracy. Sources said that allowing Puttewar to open a shop at Budhwari market was a blunder by Sakkardara police. The shop became a meeting point for goons.
