On Saturday, the body of 20-year-old Yashashree Shinde was found carrying multiple stab wounds and dumped in Navi Mumbai’s Uran area. After a 5-day hunt for the killer, police arrested Dawood Shaikh, whose advances were rejected by Yashashree, from Karnataka’s Gulbarga district. As the investigation into the murder delves deeper, chilling details have emerged about how Dawood planned the murder and evaded police for nearly a week.
The Backdrop
The origins of this crime can be traced back to 2019 when a POCSO case was registered against Dawood Shaikh based on a complaint by Yashashree’s father. Dawood was arrested and spent about a month and a half in jail.
Dawood, harbouring feelings for Yashashree, wanted to marry her and relocate to Karnataka. However, Yashashree refused his advances, leading to a persistent pressure campaign from Dawood. Whenever Yashashree blocked his number, Dawood would use his friend Mohsin’s phone to continue communicating with her. His obsession reached a point where he began threatening her with private photographs, blackmailing her into meeting him.
On July 22, Dawood left Karnataka and arrived in Navi Mumbai on the 23rd. The next day, he pressed Yashashree to meet him, which she initially refused. On July 25, in a desperate move, Dawood posted one of the private photos on Facebook, coercing Yashashree into meeting him to ensure the photo was deleted.
The Murder
On the day of the murder, Yashashree, who had taken a half-day leave from her job in Belapur, met Dawood near Jui Nagar railway station. A heated argument ensued, during which Dawood killed her.
Yashashree’s body was found on Saturday, dumped in the bushes near a railway station in Navi Mumbai’s Uran area with multiple stab wounds.
According to police sources, Dawood had brought two knives from Bangalore. On July 25, during their meeting, the situation escalated, and Dawood killed Yashashree with one of the knives. Panicked and desperate to flee, he made his way from Uran to Panvel by train, withdrew money from an ATM, and then took a bus to Karnataka.
Two tattoos bearing Dawood’s name were found on Yashashree’s body. Whether Yashashree willingly got her body tattooed or was forced to do so by Dawood is being investigated.
The Manhunt
Aware that his mobile phone could lead the police to him, Dawood turned it off and left it with his grandmother in Karnataka. From there, he began a journey on foot, traversing the mountains near his village to evade capture. Dawood’s plan was to climb one mountain, descend, and then move on to the next, continuously moving to avoid detection.
Five days before the murder, on July 20, a Panvel court issued a Non-Bailable Warrant (NBW) against Dawood for his failure to appear in court regarding the 2019 POCSO case.
The Navi Mumbai police, piecing together Dawood’s movements, launched a massive manhunt. Using human intelligence, they tracked him down to a mountain near Shahpur in Karnataka. On the morning of July 30, after five days of relentless pursuit, the police arrested Dawood from the mountains at around 5 AM.
