Saif Ali Khan stabbing: How 'shoe colour' & 500 CCTV cameras helped Mumbai cops track the attacker

In a gripping 72-hour manhunt, a Mumbai police team meticulously tracked down the suspect in the Saif Ali Khan case by analyzing footage from an astonishing 500 CCTV cameras. The investigation, spearheaded by Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Dikshit Gedam, hinged on a unique clue—the distinct color and pattern of the suspect's shoes.

The manhunt was launched across key city locations, starting from the actor’s Bandra residence and spanning Linking Road, Dadar, Worli, and Thane. The team included Assistant Commissioner Adikrao Pol, senior inspector Sanjay Marathe, and a host of dedicated officers who worked tirelessly to bring the fugitive to justice.

After fleeing the actor's flat, the accused, Shariful, lingered in the Bandra and Khar areas for over five hours. During this time, he disguised himself by cutting his hair, bathing, and changing clothes. "When we started scanning the CCTV footage, we found the accused near Sadhu Vaswani Petrol Pump in Bandra (West) on Linking Road, where he changed his shirt. He then crossed the road to avoid cameras but was captured by a CCTV at a Khar hotel," an officer explained.

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Shariful’s movements were calculated as he spent over an hour wandering before sleeping briefly at Khar station. Early in the morning, he returned to Bandra, boarded a train to Dadar, and later traveled to Worli. On January 16, he sought refuge in a Worli-Koliwada room shared by pub workers. By January 17, he had moved to a labor camp in Thane, where the police eventually arrested him.

"We kept watching the leg and the shoe for three hours and finally found the person on the CCTV near National College in Khar," police noted. The breakthrough led them to Dadar, where Shariful bought mobile accessories before heading to Worli.

DCP Gedam revealed, "He had illegally entered the country before reaching Mumbai. He was in Mumbai and Thane for the last six months and used different aliases. We are collecting details about the documents he created."

"He was in urgent need of money and planned to rob anyone and immediately escape to Bangladesh," an officer stated.

The dramatic climax of the chase came in Thane, where officers combed 30-40 acres of treacherous terrain, including thorny bushes and nullahs. "We had almost given up hope, but our seniors urged us to keep searching. Around 2 am, one of our team members shone a torch on some bushes and found the accused lying there," an officer recounted.

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