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Investigators probing the murder of 25-year-old Pune businessman Ketan Agarwal have discovered that the accused, Siya Goyal and Chetan Chaudhary, allegedly used code words in their conversations. As part of the ongoing investigation, police on Friday seized a second mobile phone belonging to Siya.

 

Siya, aged 20, and Chetan, aged 22, are accused of conspiring to kill Ketan, who was Siya's fiancé, by pushing him to his death from a cliff at Lohagad Fort near Pune on June 18. Although Siya initially claimed the incident was an accidental fall, both she and Chetan later admitted their involvement in the murder. Detectives are now attempting to decipher the coded messages exchanged between the two suspects both before and after the crime.

 

Investigating Officer Manoj Pawar stated that further enquiries revealed the pair communicated using specific code words, the precise meaning and purpose of which have yet to be established. He noted that police had previously informed a Pune court that one mobile phone had been confiscated from each of the suspects following their arrest. However, officers have since recovered the second handset belonging to Siya, which they believe could be crucial in unravelling the coded timeline.

 

Public Prosecutor Virkud argued that the data from the mobile phones had only recently been retrieved, meaning investigators had not yet had the opportunity to question the accused about the extracted material. The prosecution maintained that only Siya and Chetan could clarify the true meaning of the code words used in their chats, and subsequently requested additional time for face-to-face interrogation.

 

Conversely, Chetan’s defence lawyer, Uttarkar, opposed the application, arguing that the police were seeking an extension of detention on grounds identical to those previously cited. The defence maintained that no substantially new circumstances had arisen to justify further police remand.

 

The court ultimately turned down the prosecution's request for an extension of police custody, instead remanding both Siya and Chetan to judicial custody for 14 days until July 16. Police are now expected to focus on analysing the newly seized mobile phone and other digital evidence to piece together the exact sequence of events leading up to Ketan's death.

 

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