Mangalore: Policeman's death - Killer lorry traced, driver arrested, given bail
Sunil Haleangady
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore
Mangalore, May 29: Mulky police have succeed in tracing and arresting the lorry driver who had mowed down a coastal security policeman who was on duty at Bappanadu here, almost two months after the incident took place.
Lorry driver Lohith (23), a resident of Basavapura, Davangere was arrested in Chitradurga for the hit-and-run accident that claimed the life of Shiva Rajappa (29) in the wee hours of April 5 last month.
Rajappa
Rajappa, from Honnali in Davangere, was on duty at the checkpost near Bappanadu Temple when an unidentified lorry hit him and sped away. Rajappa and two other coastal security policemen Pramod and Seetaram were on duty to check vehicles as part of security watch during Assembly election. At around 3 am, a lorry plying from Mangalore towards Udupi rammed into Rajappa and sped away without stopping. Rajappa was killed on the spot, and the lorry driver escaped.
Mulky police who began investigating finally traced the lorry to Chitradurga and caught hold of its driver. The lorry has been seized and driver Lohith arrested on Wednesday May 29.
On interrogation, Lohith said that he was transporting iron materials from NMPT at the time of the incident.
During investigation, the police examined the CCTV footage from Hejamady. At the same time, an accident case at Udupi checkpoint wherein a lorry was involved in a collision had been filed in the Udupi police station. The police found similarities between the Udupi case and the CCTV footage from Hejamady.
They then traced Lohith's mobile number, obtained through investigation of Udupi accident case. A police official who was part of the investigating team said that after the Rajappa incident, Lohith had switched off his mobile for the next three days. He had also removed the rear number plate of the lorry, which came to the notice of the Udupi police. The dent on the lorry as a result of collision with a barricade was also noted by the police.
Lohith was later produced in the court and granted bail.
Rajappa was of 2008 batch and was posted in Mulky in 2011. His first posting was in Sullia. His wife Manjula is in the seventh month of pregnancy. He was the son of Mallappa, and was the among the youngest of two brothers and two sisters.