Mumbai John Does are six men who were murdered by an alleged serial killer in south Mumbai India between December 2006 and January 2007. A man was charged for three of the murders, but was eventually acquitted.
Case[]
Between October 2006 and January 2007, seven men, presumed to be homeless vagrants, were found stabbed or beaten to death in southern Mumbai at narrow lanes or under overpasses near or between the Churchgate and Marine Lines stations. Many of the victims were naked from the waist down, indicating that they had been sexually assaulted. A beer can was found alongside at least two of the victims, which suggested the killer shared a drink with the victims before killing them. Based on this fact, the local press dubbed the serial killer "The Beer Man."
On 9 October 2006, a victim was found beaten to death near the Bombay Hockey Stadium in Churchgate. By 2012, this victim was identified as a taxi driver named Vijay Gaud and it was reported that he was instead found on a foot overbridge close to Mumbai’s Marine Lines station.
On 14 December 2006, a victim was found close to Churchgate station. An empty Kingfisher beer can was found beside the body.
On 25 December 2006, a victim was found murdered near the Income-Tax office at Marine Lines.
On 11 January 2007, a victim was found on a footbridge near Marine Lines. He was stabbed almost 20 times on his chest, abdomen, arms, and thighs.
On 22 January 2007, a 35-year-old man named Ravindra Kantrole was arrested and charged with three of the murders. Kantrole, a former gang member who had recently converted to Islam and began raising a family in south Mumbai, denied any involvement. While being interrogated, he was subjected to a narco-analysis test and supposedly confessed to killing the victims and several additional, undiscovered victims. Several other witnesses also claimed to have witnessed him in the areas where the murders took place, although at least one testimony was questionable as the witness briefly saw him but only recognized his face months later.
In July 2008, Kantrole was acquitted of two of the murders due to a lack of evidence and unreliable witness testimony, but was convicted on the third charge in January 2009 and sentenced to life imprisonment. In September 2009, the Bombay High Court overruled the lower court, and Kantrole was subsequently released.