Mumbai top cop Himanshu Roy allegedly committed suicide by shooting himself at his residence in Mumbai on Friday. Roy, who had worked as Mumbai crime branch chief and ATS chief, was found dead at his residence around 1:45 pm.
According to initial reports, the 1988-batch Indian Police Service officer was suffering from cancer and was on long leave. However, the exact reason for his suicide is yet to be known.
Roy, who would have been 55 next month, allegedly shot himself with his service revolver. He was rushed to Bombay Hospital where he was declared brought dead.
Himanshu Roy had held many responsible positions including that of Additional Director General of Police of Maharashtra and ATS Maharashtra chief.
Roy is credited with being involved in the solving of a string of prominent cases, including the murders of journalist J Dey, fringe Bollywood actor Laila Khan and law graduate Pallavi Purkhayasta in Mumbai. He also played major role in probing IPL spot-fixing and betting.
Last week, a Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court convicted and sentenced dreaded gangster Chhota Rajan and eight others to life imprisonment for the murder of J Dey.
Roy was also part of the team which pursued leads related to American-born Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist David Headley, who was involved in carrying out a recce mission ahead of the 26/11 terror strike.
It was during his tenure as the ATF chief that software engineer Anees Ansari was arrested for allegedly planning to blow up the American school at the Bandra Kurla complex.
"He was suffering from cancer but he was fighting it. It is very unfortunate that he had to end his life like this," said Mumbai police commissioner M.N. Singh.
Reports said Roy was also a fitness enthusiast. “I had spoken to him two months ago and it did not seem to me that he was low. He was always such a strong officer,” eminent lawyer Ujjwal Nikam was quoted by a news portal.
With inputs from PTI