Dismissed senior police inspector Abhay Kurundkar and two others were found guilty by a Panvel additional sessions court in the 2016 murder of assistant police inspector Ashwini Bidre.

Kurundkar’s accomplices Kundan Bhandari and Mahesh Phalnikar were also found guilty for conspiracy and destroying evidence. Raju Patil, another accused, has been acquitted due to lack of evidence.

Delivering the judgement, Judge KG Paldewar said the case was among the rarest of the rare. The court has reserved sentencing for April 11.

Bidre’s daughter has been summoned to the court as Judge Paldewar intends to ascertain her views before delivering the sentence, Pradeep Gharat, who led the prosecution team, said. Bidre’s daughter was in class II when the incident occurred.

The sentencing will mark the culmination of the trial into the sensational case that has dragged for seven years.

Bidre was close to Kurundkar, however, their relationship soured. On the night of April 11, 2016, Kurundkar murdered Ashwini at his Bhayander residence.

Kurundkar with the help of his two accomplices later chopped the body into pieces and threw it in different places in the Vasai creek. Consequently, the body has not been recovered till date.

After Bidre went missing, a missing person complaint was filed at the Kalamboli police station on July 14, 2017. When it came to light that Kurundkar was involved in her disappearance, a kidnapping case was registered on January 31, 2017.

According to the prosecution, Kurundkar tried to cover his tracks by manipulating the records and mislead the investigations.

Kurundkar even used Bidre's phone to send messages to her relative and the police department saying that she was going for a meditation camp.

Police were able to nail Kurundkar’s lies through the Call Detail Records.

Sangeeta Shinde-Alphonso, assistant commissioner of police, who led the investigation, used GPRS, CDR, and Google data to present solid technical evidence in court.