Manoj Sane (Mira Road Murder)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Manoj Sane

• Manoj Sane is an Indian criminal whose name became infamous in June 2023 for murdering his alleged live-in partner Sarawasti Vaidya.

• After completing ITI (Industrial Training Institute) Technician course, he relocated to Mumbai where he eventually took up a job at a ration shop at The Villagers Consumers Cooperative Society Ltd.

• Manoj reportedly contracted HIV in 2008 as a result of an unsafe blood transfusion following a road accident. Since then, he has been undergoing medication to manage the infection.

• In 2008, he met Saraswati Vaidya for the first time at a ration shop, where he was working, located in the Babhai Naka area of Borivali. They were both orphans and eventually began residing together in 2015.

• They lived in the G Wing of the Geeta Akash Deep building situated in Geeta Nagar Phase 7, Mira Bhayandar Road, Mumbai for five years until 2020. Subsequently, they relocated within the same building to flat number 704 of the J Wing.

  

• Following the widespread circulation of the news regarding the murder of Saraswati Vaidya, allegations emerged suggesting a romantic involvement between the two. Nevertheless, during the investigation, Manoj Sane denied any physical relationship and asserted that she held a daughter-like position in his life.

• During the night of 7th June 2023, the Police received a complaint from Manoj’s neighbours regarding an unpleasant odour emanating from his flat. The neighbours had previously raised concerns about the foul smell, and Manoj assured them that he would investigate and address the matter.

  

• Upon the arrival of the police at the flat, fragments of Saraswati’s body were discovered in the bathroom. According to reports, it was disclosed that Manoj had murdered her on 4 June 2023. Further questioning unveiled that Manoj had dismembered her body into pieces with the intention of disposing of them.

• It is alleged that he acquired a tile cutter machine valued at Rs 1000 and a 200-volt electric chainsaw priced at Rs 4000 to dismember her body in the bathroom. To address the foul smell, he resorted to cooking the body parts in a pressure cooker. He obtained five bottles of Nilgiri (Eucalyptus) oil with the intention of slowing down the body’s decomposition process.

  

• When questioned by the police regarding the foul smell, Manoj allegedly remained composed and moved about the flat wearing a mask. While searching the flat, the police discovered Saraswati’s legs along with two additional bags containing cooked body parts in the flat.

• The police gathered the pieces of evidence from the flat and subsequently dispatched the body parts to JJ Hospital in Mumbai for forensic analysis. Additionally, there were suspicions that Manoj had fed Saraswati’s body parts to stray dogs. The police also conducted an inspection of the septic tanks in the colony as there were suspicions that Manoj had disposed of certain body parts through the toilets, considering the residents’ complaints about unusual drain clogging.

  

• With the assistance of residents, the police apprehended Manoj in the lift as he attempted to escape the building. On 8 June 2023, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered with the Nayanagar Police Station, Thane, under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence). Manoj was subsequently presented before the court, which ordered judicial custody for him until 16 May 2023.

  

• According to Manoj Sane’s alleged statement during the initial interrogation, he claimed that he lost his job at the ration shop on 29 May 2023. As a result, frequent arguments occurred between him and Saraswati. Manoj further alleged that on the morning of 3 June 2023, Saraswati, aged 32, consumed poison and committed suicide. Upon discovering her lifeless body, Manoj became fearful of being wrongfully accused of murder and made the decision to dispose of the body.

  

• During the preliminary investigation, Manoj informed the police that he was influenced by the Shraddha Walker case and thought he could dispose of the body by dismembering it into pieces.

• Both the Shraddha Walker murder case and the Saraswati Vaidya murder case share a few similarities. In both instances, the accused individuals, Aftab Poonawala and Manoj Sane, were recorded in CCTV footage carrying sacks or bags that allegedly contained the victim’s body. Furthermore, both perpetrators resorted to cutting the body into pieces.

• There were a few notable differences between the Shraddha Walker murder case and the Saraswati Vaidya murder case. Firstly, in Walker’s case, the rental agreement included both names, while in Sane’s case, he rented the flat solely under his own name. Secondly, Aftab disposed of the body by dumping it in a forest, whereas Manoj resorted to cooking the body in a pressure cooker. ^[3]The Times of India

• He maintained a secretive lifestyle and had minimal interaction with his neighbours. He kept to himself to such an extent that no one in his building knew his name.

  

• His relatives owned a seven-storey building called Sane Residency in Borivli. From flat number 701 of the building, he used to receive a monthly rent of Rs 35,000.

• During the initial investigation, Manoj Sane disclosed that Saraswati possessed a highly possessive nature. He stated that she would often suspect him of infidelity whenever he arrived home late from work.