Murder accused absconding for 22 years held in Ajmer

Ajmer: District police, Thursday, arrested a murder accused who had been absconding for 22 years and was wanted in three criminal cases registered in Ajmer and Jaipur districts.

The accused, Vijay Kumar Jat (41), had been evading arrest since allegedly killing his brother-in-law, Mukesh Kumar of Padsoli village in Jaipur’s Dudu area, during a dispute over money while both were working at a factory in Surat, Gujarat. After the incident, he fled and remained on the run for more than two decades.

Police said Vijay repeatedly changed his appearance and identity and lived at various locations in Jaipur, Hisar, Panipat and several cities in Punjab to avoid arrest.

Investigators said he was also wanted in two other cases. In 2016, he allegedly became involved in a land dispute in Dudu and was booked in a robbery and dacoity case before absconding again. In 2020, during the Covid-19 lockdown, he allegedly attacked his father, Om Prakash Choudhary, with an axe in Roopangarh after being asked to undergo quarantine. A case was subsequently registered against him.

Ajmer Superintendent of Police Harsh Vardhan Agarwala had constituted a special team to trace the accused, who had already been declared an absconder by a court.

Acting on a tip-off, the police team arrested Vijay when he recently returned to his native village in the Roopangarh area. Police said the accused will be produced before a court Friday and further investigation is underway.