Three police officers suspended in connection with worker’s death in Goa | News from India

However, during the subsequent investigation, it emerged that the victim had been arrested by Ponda police station officials for “causing ruckus and disturbing the peace” a few hours before his death on June 24.

A police official said that the Ponda police received a call on the evening of June 24 about a “vagrant” causing trouble and Mandal was taken to the police station. “The victim was not wearing any clothes and could not give any information about his past. The policemen from Ponda police station dropped him off at Loutolim at around 12.30 am,” the official said.

Police said the victim was allegedly hit by a truck on the side of the road at around 2am and crushed to death. The autopsy revealed that the victim had sustained stab wounds, suggesting that he was attacked before being run over by the truck. The autopsy report stated that “the body showed injuries with damage to the abdominal organs consistent with sharp, cutting and piercing weapons inflicted on a human being.”

Based on the post-mortem report, the police have now registered a case of murder against an unknown person. After an investigation, three policemen — Superintendent of Police Ravindra Naik of Ponda police station, Constable Ashwin Sawant and Constable Pritesh Prabhu — were suspended on Thursday for negligence in duty, police said. Sawant and Prabhu were deployed in Ponda police’s robot vehicle.

Police said the suspected truck driver who ran over the victim has not been arrested yet. The vehicle has been traced in Belagavi, police added.

A police official said, “The three policemen did not follow the prescribed procedure after arresting the victim. No diary entry was made at Ponda police station. Instead of dropping him off in the jurisdiction of another police station, the victim should have been taken to a homeless shelter. Accordingly, an inquiry has been initiated against the policemen. All aspects, including the circumstances leading to the victim’s death, are being investigated.”