Updated on: 25 March 2023 12:00 IST | Mumbai
S S Nadar | news@debotimes.in

The accused has been arrested and will be produced before the court Saturday.

A 54-year-old man was arrested by the D B Marg police in south Mumbai for allegedly killing three persons, including a senior citizen couple. The police said Chetan Gala, who is “mentally disturbed”, allegedly attacked five of his neighbours on Friday afternoon of which two persons are grievously injured and are recuperating at a hospital.

According to the police, the incident took place around 3.30 pm at the Parvati Mansion building.

Deputy Commissioner of police Abhinav Deshmukh (zone II) said, “He lives separately from his family because they left him two months ago and were living with his wife’s family in a nearby residential building. It appears that Gala has been mentally disturbed since they left him.” Gala has a wife, three daughters and a son.

On Friday afternoon, one of Gala’s daughters went and gave him lunch at his second-floor residence at the Parvati Mansion building on Grant Road. They live in the same area, said the police.

Around 3.34 pm, Gala stepped outside his house with a knife in his hand. He initially went and attacked his neighbours Jayendra (77) and Ilabai Mistry (70) and stabbed them several times.

He then came out of their house and saw that a person named Prakash Waghmare (garbage collector) was sleeping in the common passage. “As soon as Gala started running towards him to stab on his stomach, Waghmare sensed something amiss and placed his pillow on his stomach due to which he did not sustain a deep injury,” said a police officer, adding, he is currently out of danger and recuperating at Nair hospital.

When Snehal Bramabhat, a resident of the first floor and a friend of Gala’s wife, heard a commotion, she went to the second floor to investigate, but Gala stabbed her as well.

“Snehal’s daughter Jenil also followed her to the second floor and she too was attacked,” said an officer, adding, “Jenil has succumbed to her injuries while her mother Snehal is critical and is being treated at HN Reliance hospital.”

The police added that Gala further noticed that a ten-year-old boy identified as Aarav Shah, who stayed on the third floor of the building, was seeing the whole incident from the stairs. He ran towards the minor and caught him.

“He was about to stab the ten-year-old in his stomach when a group of men staying downstairs went to the second floor with stumps and a bat and threatened to harm him. On seeing a group of men approaching him, Gala got scared, left Shah and hid behind a pillar on the same floor,” said an officer. The police said that the accused then went and locked himself inside his house.

The whole incident took place for nearly half an hour, according to the residents. One of them dialled the Mumbai police control room. The DB Marg police were then informed following which a team was sent to the spot and the accused was caught.

“He had closed the door and was sitting inside his house. We were scared that he would harm himself if we forced ourselves in, so we indulged him in a conversation and requested him to open the door. He was initially reluctant but 15-20 mins later, he opened the door and silently surrendered before us,” said an officer.

The DB Marg police have registered a case of murder and attempted murder against Gala. He was arrested and will be produced before court Saturday.

The police are further checking whether he was seeking any psychiatrist treatment. Gala is jobless and his source of income was through a shop that he had rented out.

“We are also trying to ascertain what triggered him on Friday to commit such a horrific crime,” said an officer.