A 30-year-old labourer was beaten to death in a case of road rage by three men allegedly under the influence of alcohol in central Delhi’s Mori Gate area, police said on Saturday. All three accused have been arrested.
The victim, identified as Bunty, was returning with his colleague Gokarn alias Raja in a three-wheeler after delivering PVC wire rolls in Naya Bazar on the evening of June 30, when the incident occurred.
Around 8.35 pm, near Khoya Mandi on Nityanand Marg, an e-rickshaw carrying three men intercepted their vehicle. “An argument broke out over rash and zigzag driving, which soon turned violent,” said Raja Banthia, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North).
According to police, one of the e-rickshaw passengers slapped Gokarn, while the other two dragged Bunty out of the vehicle and began thrashing him. “They kicked and punched him repeatedly until he collapsed on the spot. As a crowd began to gather, the assailants fled,” the DCP added.
Gokarn, with the help of a passerby, rushed Bunty to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
A murder case was registered at Kashmere Gate police station on July 1. Investigators traced CCTV footage from several locations to track the e-rickshaw’s route. The attackers were seen moving towards Yudhishthir Setu via Kashmere Gate.
Further footage revealed that the three suspects had earlier purchased alcohol near Tis Hazari Courts and boarded the e-rickshaw at the SPM T-point, Lahori Gate. “The clues led us to the Lahori Gate Chowk area, where one of the accused, Ritesh Kumar, 27, was identified in CCTV footage and located at a dry fruit shop,” the DCP said.
Based on Kumar’s confession, police arrested the other two accused – Anil, 33, and Vicky, 25 – from nearby shops. All three were employed at dry fruit shops in the Lahori Gate area and were not known to the victim.
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In custody, the accused admitted to being intoxicated at the time. Ritesh confessed to slapping Gokarn during the argument, while Anil and Vicky assaulted Bunty. They claimed they fled the scene unaware that the victim would succumb to his injuries.
Police described the attack as an alcohol-fuelled, impulsive act triggered by road rage.
(With inputs from PTI)
