Samir Vinu Patel, an accused in the 2002 Ode massacre case who fled to the UK and absconded from the trial for 14 years, has been acquitted by a special court in Anand.
The SIT judge R M Sarin granted Patel the benefit of doubt, because the Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team (SIT) could not furnish substantial evidence to prove his involvement in the communal violence in Malav Bhagol area of Ode town on March 1, 2002, in which three persons were killed.