Panaji (Goa) [India], December 9 (HBTV): The owners of the Arpora nightclub involved in the recent fire incident, Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, fled to Phuket in Thailand soon after the blaze, the Goa Police said in a press note on Monday. Police added that they are coordinating with the Interpol Division of the CBI to apprehend both accused.
According to the statement, police said that travelling to Phuket indicates the accused’s ‘intent to avoid investigation’.
Goa Police said that soon after the FIR was registered, a team was dispatched to Delhi to raid the addresses of Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra. As they were not found, a notice under relevant legal provisions was pasted at their residence. By the evening of December 7, a Look Out Circular was issued for both by the Bureau of Immigration at the request of Goa Police. The Bureau of Immigration in Mumbai later confirmed that the two had taken the 6E 1073 flight to Phuket at 5.30 am on December 7, just hours after the incident, which took place around midnight. Police said this further indicates their intent to evade the investigation.
The press note stated that Goa Police have taken additional steps to work with the Interpol Division of the CBI to ensure the early arrest of Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra. Police also said that one person, Bharat Kohli, was apprehended in Delhi and brought to Goa on transit remand for further questioning. Post-mortem examinations of all the deceased have been completed, and the bodies handed over to their families.
The massive fire broke out in the early hours of Sunday at a nightclub in Arpora, resulting in a high-casualty incident. In response, the Goa government formed a committee to investigate the case.
On Monday, a high-level inquiry committee visited the restaurant-cum-club to conduct further inspections. The committee includes the District Magistrate, SP (South), Deputy Director (Fire and Emergency Services) and the Director (Forensics), and is overseeing the ongoing investigation.
(ANI)