Murder convict on run for 27 years nabbed at wedding in Panchmahal

Vadodara: A murder convict who had been on the run for 27 years after escaping from prison was finally arrested by the police when he returned to Panchmahal to attend a wedding. The accused, Arjunsinh Rathod, was handed over to the Amreli police, as he had escaped from a prison there in 1998.
Rathod, a native of Bodidra village in Kalol taluka of Panchmahal district, was convicted for a murder he committed in 1993. According to police sources, the incident occurred during a drunken altercation, and Rathod was arrested shortly after the crime. Following his conviction, he was sent to serve his sentence at Amreli prison.
In 1998, he managed to escape from an open jail facility in Amreli. Despite a case being registered and multiple efforts to trace him, Rathod remained elusive for nearly three decades.
"His mother, who was left alone after his conviction, later moved to Kanod village near Bodidra. We received a tip-off that Rathod would be attending a wedding in Bodidra, which helped us track him down," said Kalol police inspector R.D. Bharwad.
Rathod was apprehended in Kanod with the help of an informer. As he was only 25 when the murder occurred, identifying him proved challenging due to his changed appearance over the years. "He is now around 52 years old, and his physical features had altered significantly, which made identification difficult without the informer's help," Bharwad added.
During his time on the run, Rathod reportedly lived in Wankaner and other areas in the Saurashtra region, occasionally visiting his mother. He remained unmarried and led a solitary life.