Fugitive murderer hid in Ahmedabad as businessman, speaker

Ahmedabad: For nearly 13 years, neighbours in New Ranip allegedly knew him as Sanjay Thakkar, a soft-spoken financier, loan consultant and someone who occasionally narrated spiritual texts at local gatherings. Few suspected the man was actually Satish Ruparelia, a convicted murderer who had been living under a false identity since jumping parole 13 years ago.

What has stunned investigators even more is that Ruparelia allegedly spent those years living barely 4km from Sabarmati Central Jail, yet no agency flagged his presence or linked his new identity to his criminal record.

Late on Sunday night, the Ahmedabad crime branch detained the 58-year-old from New Ranip, nearly 31 years after the sensational murder of textile trader Arvind Shah in a Shahibaug hotel room. “Ruparelia, also known as Bhikhu, rebuilt his life under a changed identity after disappearing during temporary parole release,” said police.

Officers said he remarried in 2014, lived with his second wife and two children, operated money-lending activities and worked as a financial consultant while remaining underground.

Officers said he also donned the role of a spiritual speaker occasionally.

Ruparelia was convicted in the 1994 murder of businessman Arvind Shah, a case that shocked Ahmedabad because the victim was allegedly robbed, murdered and beheaded inside Neelam Hotel in Shahibaug.

According to police records, Ruparelia and co-accused Rajesh Panchal allegedly lured Shah to the hotel on Oct 22, 1994, under the pretext of a discounted textile deal. Investigators said Shah was carrying cash and gold ornaments. Police alleged the duo robbed and murdered him before severing his head and carrying it in a bag towards Adalaj to prevent identification.

In April 2000, an additional city sessions court awarded death sentences to both accused under sections related to murder, robbery and criminal conspiracy under the IPC and provisions of the Bombay Police Act. The Gujarat high court later commuted the sentence to life imprisonment.

Crime branch officers said Ruparelia was released on parole in 2013 but never returned to jail. “He kept shifting locations and used different identities to avoid detection,” an officer said.

Officers said a surveillance team from the crime branch tracked his movements after receiving inputs that a man was falsely using the identity of Sanjay Thakkar in New Ranip. “Technical surveillance and local verification confirmed that the person was Ruparelia,” an officer said.

The crime branch detained him in a targeted operation at his residence without resistance. Officers said he would be returned to judicial custody to serve the remaining portion of his sentence.