Mumbai BMW hit-and-run probe taking a U-turn? Cops say Mihir Shah ‘did not realise pillion rider was stuck under wheel’

Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case update: Mihir Shah, the prime accused in the BMW hit-and-run case, was inebriated at the time his luxury car crashed into a scooter on Dr Annie Besant Road, according to Investigating officers from Worli police station.

The 23-year-old consumed large amounts of alcohol in two phases before the incident, HT reported. The accident resulted in the death of a pillion rider and injured the scooterist.

On Thursday, an officer involved in the investigation stated that on Saturday night, Mihir and three of his friends ordered 12 large pegs of Jack Daniels at Vice-Global Tapas Bar on Juhu-Tara Road. While three of them consumed four pegs each, one opted for Red Bull, resulting in a total bill of ₹18,730. Since one of the friends was a regular customer at the bar and is 32 years old, "liquor was served to all." The legal age to consume alcohol in Maharashtra is 25.

Later, the accused dropped his friends home in his Mercedes. On reaching his home in Borivali, he decided to take his BMW to Marine Drive with his driver, Rajrishi Bidawat. On the way, they purchased four 500 ml cans of Budweiser Magnum from at Sai Prasad Bar in Malad and drank all along the way.

“We have recorded the statement of Rajiv Shah, the waiter at the bar, who gave them the beer cans,” HT quoted a police officer as saying.

Also read: Worli BMW hit-and-run case: What changes if Mihir Shah proves he was not drunk?

The police officer said Mihir Shah expressed remorse while confessing that he was drunk “while driving the vehicle when the accident took place.” The officer added, "He said he did not realise that the pillion rider was stuck beneath the car,” reported HT. Shah had reportedly hinted a day before to cops that he was driving the car at the time of the accident and police had hinted that Shah was very much aware that the pillion rider was stuck under one of the tyres.

Cops say now that the scooterist, identified as Pradip Nakhwa, fell on the bonnet of the car following the crash, and as a result, the windshield broke. The vehicle began to make noise as Shah drove further ahead, not realising that Pradip’s wife, Kaveri, was stuck under the vehicle. He assumed that the noise arose from the broken wiper, Shah told the cops, as per the HT report. 

Another police officer said Mihir panicked and called his father" who shocked by the incident, told the driver to take the wheel. They removed the deceased and put her on the side of the road. But when the driver reversed, he ran over the deceased’s legs again,” HT reported. 

Also read: Mumbai BMW hit-and-run: Mihir Shah knew victim was stuck under the tyre, tried to dodge cops; girl friend under scanner

During the trial, the driver told the court that he wasn't drunk at the time of the incident. The police failed to find beer cans in the car. Cops also need to recover the destroyed number plate for further investigation.