Udupi: Padubidri Police have arrested a lorry driver who had been on the run for 23 years after being convicted in connection with a fatal road accident that claimed the life of a schoolboy in 2002.
The accused, Vilas Shinde, a resident of Bor Utralli in Pune, was traced to Maharashtra and brought to Udupi following a coordinated police operation.
Convicted in 2002 fatal accident
According to police, the accident occurred on September 7, 2002, near Muloor Mosque under the jurisdiction of Padubidri Police Station.
Investigators said Shinde was allegedly driving a mini goods lorry from Mangaluru towards Udupi in a rash and negligent manner when he hit a schoolboy walking along the roadside. The child died on the spot due to the impact.
Following the incident, Padubidri Police registered a case and later filed a chargesheet before the court.
Accused absconded after conviction
After the trial, the court found Shinde guilty and sentenced him to three months’ imprisonment along with a fine of ₹1,000.
However, police said the accused absconded after the conviction and remained untraceable for the next 23 years. The court subsequently issued a Long Pending Case (LPC) warrant for his arrest.
Traced to Pune, produced before court
Acting on the directions of Udupi Superintendent of Police Hariram Shankar, a special police team launched a search and traced Shinde to Pune, where he was working as a lorry driver.
The operation was carried out under the supervision of Additional SP Sudhakar S. Nayak, Karkala DySP S. Vijayaprasad and Kapu Circle Inspector Azmath Ali.
The team, comprising PSI Sakthivelu, Anilkumar T. Nayak, and police personnel Rajesh P., Krishnaprasad and Sandesh Bhandary, arrested the accused and produced him before the court in Udupi.