Just why an intruder broke into Bollywood star couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan’s home in Bandra, stabbed and seriously injured Saif and vanished remains a mystery more than 48 hours after the attack.
The Mumbai police have formed more than 30 teams to trace the attacker, who remains at large.
Here’s what is known, so far.
An intruder attacked Saif, 54, after entering his apartment in the top floors of the 12-floor Satguru Sharan building early on Thursday. The actor sustained multiple stab wounds. A knife blade was stuck to his spine when he reached the Lilavati Hospital in an autorickshaw.
He had to undergo emergency surgery and the doctors said had the knife wound been 2mm deeper Saif may not have lived.
Kareena has informed the police that the intruder got aggressive during the scuffle but did not touch jewellery kept in the open, PTI on Saturday quoted a police official as saying.
The cops have recorded the actress's statement, the official said.
The official told PTI that the police are yet to record Saif’s statement. After the incident, Kareena's sister, actress Karishma Kapoor, took her to her residence in Khar, the official said.
This bit of information – that the attacker did not touch the jewellery – adds another layer of intrigue to the mystery surrounding the attack.
The attacker was not working for any criminal gang and probably was not even aware whose house he had entered, police said on Friday, citing their investigation carried out so far.
So, a random thief entered a VIP home in a posh suburb in the financial capital of India, did not steal anything, stabbed one of India’s biggest movie stars, and fled?
Not only that, the intruder is reported to have changed clothes after the attack to fool the police.
He did not even stop at that. This ordinary robber was so confident after stabbing one of India’s biggest stars that he coolly went and bought headphones from a shop in Dadar.
Mumbai police crime branch officials collected CCTV footage from the mobile shop.
"He [the suspect] visited my shop and purchased an earphone for Rs 50,” Hasan, who works at the shop, told PTI Videos. “He gave me Rs 100, I returned him Rs 50 and he left the shop. Some police officials came to the shop yesterday [Friday] and took away the CCTV footage. They enquired about the person [suspect]. I wasn't aware of what he had done.”
The 54-year-old actor suffered multiple stab wounds, including on his neck and near the spine, in a brutal attack at his house in Bandra in the early hours of Thursday. He was rushed to Lilavati Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery.
"My boy who works here told me that he gave earphones to him (alleged suspect) and later he. Some police officials came and took the CCTV footage yesterday," said shop owner Shakir.
Police on Friday picked up a carpenter in connection with the attack as he resembled the intruder, whose images were caught on CCTV cameras. The cops brought the carpenter to the Bandra police station for questioning on Friday morning but released him later.
A senior police official clarified that the man was not related to the attack on Khan, and no one has been arrested so far.
"The person detained has been released. He was picked up as he looked like the intruder captured in the CCTV footage. But he had an alibi, which was verified by the police.
Based on that, the detained person has been released. Our probe is still on. We are looking at all angles," the senior official told PTI.
"This seems to be a stray incident. The alleged intruder was not working for any gang, as per the prima facie investigation. He probably was not even aware whose house he had entered in," he added.
CCTV footage showed the assailant, wearing a red scarf and carrying a backpack, scurrying down the stairs from the sixth floor of the 'Satguru Sharan' building, where Khan lives, at around 2.30am.
Maharashtra minister of state for home (urban) Yogesh Kadam said robbery was the motive behind the incident and clarified no underworld gang was involved in the knife attack.
