Mumbai: The city crime branch on Thursday arrested Asaram Fasle (42) from Pune in connection with the recent firing at filmmaker Rohit Shetty’s Juhu bungalow, taking the total number of arrests in the case to five. The shooter is still at large.Police alleged that Fasale, a resident of Malwali in Pune, provided the weapon used in the firing incident, which was allegedly masterminded by Shubham Lonkar, a close associate of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. Lonkar, who is also wanted in the cases related to the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique and the firing outside actor Salman Khan’s Bandra residence in 2024, is still on the run.Fasale was produced before the 37th Metropolitan Magistrate Vinod Patil, who remanded him in police custody till Feb 11. The court also extended the custody of the other four arrested accused — Swapnil Sakat (23), Siddharth Yenpure (19), Samarth Pomaji (19), and Aditya Gayaki (19), all Pune residents — till the same date.While seeking Fasale’s custody, police informed the court that they want to investigate how many more weapons and money was provided by Lonkar to the accused. Police claimed that Lonkar contacted Fasale through a social media platform. As per Lonkar’s instructions, police alleged, Fasale supplied three weapons to Sakat, who gave one of them to the shooter who fired at Shetty’s residence on Sunday around 12.45am.According to investigators, one pistol, three magazines, and an air gun seized from Sakat were supplied by Fasale prior to the commission of the crime. Police are investigating whether the seized weapons were used in the firing incident or any other criminal activity. Investigators have also found that the arrested accused communicated with Lonkar through a messaging app, and a few of them have deleted the apps from their phones. Police said Fasale’s phone will be examined to retrieve deleted data and establish communication links among the accused.A deleted social media post claiming responsibility for the firing incident, allegedly in the name of the Bishnoi gang, has been retrieved. Police said they are examining whether those named in the post have any role in the crime.
