Ponda: Tapash Tapan Mistry, 33, hailing from West Bengal was smothered to death after his sand-laden truck fell into a deep ravine near the Shree Dudhsagar deity shrine at Anmod Ghat at around 6.30 am on Sunday. The truck was coming from Karnataka to Goa.Collem police said Mistry was found buried beneath a heap of sand, with one of his hands protruding from it. Police, with the assistance of Ponda firemen, recovered his body.“Descending into the ravine and removing from the sand heap took around an hour. By then Mistry was dead”, the police said. He was alone in the truck at the time of the accident, a passerby told police.Mistry’s body has been preserved at the mortuary of the South Goa District Hospital (SGDH) in Margao for an autopsy, which is likely to be conducted only after his family members arrive in Goa.Police have registered the accident as an unnatural death at the Collem police station under section 195 of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023. Collem PSI Rohan Naik is investigating the case.In another accident at Dharbandora, Nikhil Naik, 24, a resident of Dongri in Tiswari taluka rammed his bike into a scooter ridden by Vijay Chavan, 68, from Piliyem. Chavan was on his way home from Mollem.Chavan was immediately rushed to the Dharbandora primary health centre at Piliyem where he was declared dead. A motor vehicle accident case has been registered at the Ponda police station against Naik.Chavan’s body has been preserved in the mortuary of SGDH, Margao and the autopsy is likely to be conducted on Monday.While the ASI Rohidas Bhomkar conducted the panchanama, PSI Ashish Velip of Ponda police station carried out further investigation.
