Signal app used to coordinate Rohit Shetty house firing, police tell court
The Mumbai Police informed the court that conversations related to the January 31 firing at filmmaker Rohit Shetty's house were conducted through the Signal app and later deleted, prompting efforts to retrieve the data as part of the ongoing investigation.
Investigators probing the firing outside filmmaker Rohit Shetty’s Mumbai residence have found that the accused used the encrypted messaging platform Signal to coordinate the attack, a magistrate court was told on Thursday while extending their police custody till February 11.
The Mumbai Police informed the court that conversations related to the January 31 firing were conducted through the Signal app and later deleted, prompting efforts to retrieve the data as part of the ongoing investigation.
Earlier in the day, police arrested another accused, Asaram Fasle alias Babu, who is alleged to have supplied arms for the attack. He was produced in court along with Aditya Gyaneshwar Gayaki (19), Siddharth Deepak Yenpure (20), Samarth Shivsharan Pomaji (18) and Swapnil Bandu Sakat (23), all residents of Pune. According to investigators, the group provided logistical support to the shooter, who remains absconding.
Investigating Officer Kadam told the court that a cache of illegal weapons, including a pistol, three magazines and an airgun was seized from Sakat. He said the firing appeared to be a planned act, with a vehicle purchased and weapons procured shortly before the incident.
Police also told the court that the alleged mastermind, Shubham Lonkar, is wanted in both the Rohit Shetty firing case and the murder of former MLA Baba Siddique. The accused were allegedly acting on his instructions and coordinated through Signal before deleting the app to destroy evidence.
The prosecution sought further custody for interrogation, arguing that the accused needed to be confronted with one another and questioned jointly. Defence counsel opposed the plea, claiming the accused were young, not caught at the spot and arrested merely on suspicion, and had no links to Lonkar or knowledge of how the motorcycle connected to them would be used.
Magistrate V R Patil, however, observed that the case involved serious offences and a suspected criminal conspiracy that needed to be unravelled. Citing progress in the investigation and the need for detailed questioning, particularly after Fasle’s fresh arrest, the court remanded all accused to police custody till February 11.
Police said Lonkar, believed to be a close associate of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, had allegedly targeted several Bollywood celebrities, some of whom reportedly received extortion threats.
Five rounds were fired outside Shetty’s bungalow in Mumbai’s Juhu area on January 31. The shooter is still at large and the investigation is ongoing, with police examining digital evidence and possible links to organised crime networks.