Kolkata: Six days after a 41-year-old fruit vendor, Mehboob Alam, was brutally murdered in broad daylight in the bustling area of Rajabazar crossing on Dec 22, the cops have cracked the case.
Investigators from Amherst Street Police, with help from Detective Department, successfully tracked down and arrested the suspect, Muslim Ansari, on Dec 28.
He was apprehended at the Birni Police Station compound in Giridih, Jharkhand, where the scooty used in the crime was also recovered. A knife, believed to be the murder weapon, was earlier found at the scene of the attack.
The accused is set to be presented before the Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Giridih, where cops will seek a transit remand to bring him back to Kolkata for further legal proceedings by Monday.
"An extra-marital affair of the deceased (victim) Mehboob Alam with the wife of the assailant Md Muslim led to the murder," said joint CP (crime & traffic)) Rupesh Kumar.
The attack, which occurred around 9 am, left the local community in shock and fear even as the assailant fled the scene on a scooty
The suspect, Muslim, also known as Muslim Ansari, allegedly approached Alam's fruit stall on APC Road and engaged in a heated argument before launching a vicious knife attack.
Eyewitnesses had described the scene as chaotic, with passersby left stunned by the sudden outbreak of violence. Alam was taken to Nil Ratan Sircar Medical College Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.