Mumbai: Mehboob Alam (32), the driver of Cox & Kings’ chief operating officer Venku Murthi who was driving rashly in an inebriated state early on Sunday morning, was nabbed after a four-kilometre-long chase from Byculla to RAK Marg.
The police said that Alam was driving southwards when he hit a two-wheeler, injuring two, and then took a left turn and began speeding towards the suburbs in order to escape. However, by then, several vehicles had begun following him along with a police interceptor.
“The accused was intercepted in the jurisdiction of the RAK Marg police station minutes after the accident,” said Dinesh Kadam, senior inspector of the Byculla police, which is investigating the case.
The police had rushed its night patrol van to take charge of the situation while the chase was underway. Locals apprehended Alam after chasing him for around 10 to 15 minutes, the police said. Alam has been working for the Murthi family as a driver for a month, police said.
After the car was intercepted, Alam was pulled out and beaten by the locals while the vehicle was vandalised. There was a nearly empty whiskey bottle lying on the front seat, which was allegedly consumed by Alam. The accused was heading home while getting drunk inside the car, the keys of which were given to him by the owner.
Javed, whose two-wheeler was hit by the speeding car, said, “The driver drove over someone’s foot and he rammed into me at Lalbaug. We nabbed him near Sundar Tower on RAK Marg. There were liquor bottles inside the car.”
Ramesh More, a police inspector who was at the spot soon after the accident, said, “The car belongs to Venku Murthi who left for Dubai a day before. The owner gives the keys to him whenever she is out of town. He said that he took the car out in the evening and later consumed alcohol.”
A case of drunk driving and endangering the life and personal safety of others has been registered against Alam. A medical examination was conducted on Alam, which preliminary reports have revealed that his alcohol level was multiple times higher than the permitted limit. He has been remanded in police custody for further investigation.
Meanwhile, RTO officials said that they had not received any details from the police. They said they would the necessary action against the owner or driver after receiving details about the incident and accused.
