According to the police, a dispute arose after the car collided with the victim’s motorcycle. “The accused fled after the incident. A CCTV camera has captured images of the car but the registration number could not identified. We are checking footage from other cameras to identify the car, its driver and his three accomplices,” sub-inspector Shekhar Mokate said on Monday.
Mokate said the motorist Arren Almeda and his friend Sagar Sankhe, who was riding pillion, were headed home in Camp after partying in Kondhwa. “A car rammed into the bike’s silencer when they stopped at Try Luck Chowk following which Almeda chased it confronted the driver over the accident. In the heated arguments that ensued, the accused abused him,” he added.
Almeda told the police that the driver of the car told him that the incident occurred by mistake. However, the police said, one of the three men pulled out a sharp weapon and attacked him on his face and back. He also attacked his friend. “The duo went to hospital for treatment, where they received stitches,” Mokate said.
Police said that the victims have not given the description of the assailants, colour or registration number of the car. “We are analysing CCTV footage and hope to crack the case at the earliest,” the police officer added.
Almeda did not answer phone calls when a TOI staffer tried to reach him. A complaint relating to attempted murder and criminal intimidation has been lodged.
Last year, there were 10 cases of assaults due to road rage. This year, there have already been three major incidents, including a murder.
The volume and intensity of these crimes have increased as both Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad enter a perpetual state of construction.