Adalaj canal murder: ‘Psychotic killer’ who began life of crime at 8 nabbed from Rajkot after 3-day manhunt

The Ahmedabad City Crime Branch arrested Vipul Parmar—also known as Vimal or Neel—after an intense three-day manhunt, calling him a “psychotic and dangerously violent” offender who had terrified his own family and neighbours for years. Parmar, 25, is accused of fatally stabbing 24-year-old Vaibhav Manwani during a late-night birthday outing near the Ambapur canal in Adalaj on Sunday.

Childhood steeped in crime

Investigators describe Parmar as a habitual offender who, according to locals, displayed violent streaks from as young as eight. “His family and neighbours have long lived in fear. He lashes out without provocation and has repeatedly attacked people,” a senior crime branch officer said. Police records show previous allegations of armed robberies and even murder, though some cases collapsed in court for want of evidence.

His father, a former CRPF jawan, is deceased; relatives in Shaherkotda and Ambapur have reportedly kept their distance, unwilling to confront him.

Crime branch sets a trap

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Ajit Rajian put Inspector M P Chauhan’s Squad 8 in charge of the hunt. Twenty-five officers were split into four units: one lay in wait at the canal in plain clothes in case the killer returned; another kept round-the-clock watch on Parmar’s mother’s home in Ambapur; a third shadowed his sister’s residence in Shaherkotda; while a technical cell scoured phone data and CCTV feeds.

The breakthrough came early Tuesday when a tip-off placed Parmar at his sister’s in-laws’ house in Khandagiri Gam on the outskirts of Rajkot. Inspector Madhuri Gohel led a rapid strike team which tracked him to the nearby Dungra locality.

“When confronted, he bolted,” an officer recounted. “Our team gave chase and, after a brief scuffle in which one officer and the accused suffered minor injuries, he was subdued.” Parmar is being brought back to Ahmedabad by road.

Survivor’s clue cracked the case

Police said the crucial lead came from the survivor of Sunday’s attack—Vaibhav’s girlfriend—who, despite serious stab wounds, recalled clawing the attacker’s face in self-defence. “That scratch on the left side of his face became our marker,” a crime branch official said. CCTV footage soon confirmed a man with a fresh facial wound moving near the canal service road shortly after the murder.

Over three days, officers interrogated more than a dozen suspects before zeroing in on Parmar.

The Ambapur canal murder

Vaibhav Manwani was celebrating his 25th birthday when he and his girlfriend were ambushed near the secluded canal stretch. He was stabbed multiple times; she survived four stab wounds and remains in hospital. Police believe robbery was the motive, with the assailant fleeing in Manwani’s car, which later broke down and was abandoned.

Parmar will be produced before a magistrate after medical examination. “This was a dangerous, cold-blooded offender. The swift detection reflects the perseverance of our team and the value of technical surveillance combined with old-fashioned fieldwork,” DCP Rajian said.