Indian police have arrested Bhavesh Bhinde, the owner of a large billboard that collapsed onto a petrol station in Mumbai, killing 16 people. The arrest follows the filing of a culpable homicide case against Bhinde, who had fled the city after the incident.
The tragedy occurred on Monday during severe rain and dust storms that hit the coastal megacity. Rescue operations saved 75 people trapped under the wreckage.
Bhinde was apprehended late Thursday in Udaipur, about 800 kilometers
(497 miles) north of Mumbai, where he had been hiding in a hotel under a relative’s name, according to police joint commissioner Lakhmi Gautam, as reported by The Indian Express.
“Our teams had been tracking him and eventually located him on Thursday evening,” Gautam said.
Efforts to reach the police for additional comments were unsuccessful. The storm that struck Mumbai on Monday uprooted trees, caused power outages in various neighbourhoods, and disrupted the city’s train network. Mumbai’s international airport also temporarily grounded flights, diverting at least 15 planes.
In response to the incident, Eknath Shinde, the chief minister of Maharashtra state, ordered an audit of all billboards in Mumbai to prevent similar accidents in the future.
