The Aurangabad police has cracked a seven-month-old murder case using just a tiny piece of evidence -- a shirt button from the crime scene.
The police on Wednesday arrested Ajay Gulabrao Ragade (30), Chetan Ashok Gaikwad (34) and Sandip Asaram Gaikwad for robbing and killing wine shop employee Bhikan Niloba Jadhav (48) in Sillod city of Maharashtra's Aurangabad district, superintendent of police Mokshada Patil said.
The police only had a shirt button for evidence in the crime that took place on May 12 this year, she said.
The police team couldn't recover any concrete from the scene of crime apart from a shirt button with the words 'rope last stitch' engraved on it, the senior officer said.
Using this, the police contacted online vendors of such shirts to get details of the buyers, she said.
"We got details of 10,000 buyers, of which we shortlisted 246 who had criminal background. Our teams then traced these suspects who were scattered across five states," Patil said.
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The police kept a close watch on Ragade because he had ordered two knifes just four days before the crime, the officer said, adding that Ragade's involvement then led them to the other accused.
The police have seized Rs 24,000 in cash, a cellphone and motorcycle used in crime, she said.
"Chetan Gaikwad is the mastermind in this case. Ragade and Sandip Gaikwad have admitted to robbing a wine shop in Badnapur as well," Patil said.
The police team has been awarded a cash prize of Rs 30,000, she said, adding that further investigation is underway.