India
oi-Prakash KL
A property dispute and fear of losing his inheritance allegedly drove a 36-year-old man to plot the murder of his father in Kanpur, the PTI reported citing police.
Initially it cops had suspected the man’s wife of being behind the killing.
Kanpur police arrested Subrat, 36, for allegedly conspiring with former employee Vishal Gautam to murder his father, pharmaceutical dealer Vineet Manocha, on September 5, citing property disputes and financial motives.
The victim, 60-year-old pharmaceutical dealer Vineet Manocha, was found with his throat slit inside his flat in Kanpur’s Indira Nagar area on September 5. He was alone at home at the time. His son Subrat, meanwhile, was attending a party with his wife, Shalu.
The investigation initially focused on Shalu, who was arrested along with former family employee Vishal Gautam and his associate Rajkishore. The case took a different turn after police traced six calls made by Vishal to Subrat from a newly purchased SIM card.
Subrat was questioned extensively and arrested on September 23.
During interrogation, Subrat allegedly told police that he feared his father would move in with another woman and transfer his property to her. Police said Vineet had relationships with several women, according to the statement attributed to his son.
Investigators said the original plan was to make the death look accidental or natural. The plan was later changed and the killing was allegedly carried out by Vishal.
Police said Subrat was financially dependent on his father, who gave him around Rs 40,000 every month for his expenses. At the same time, Subrat was reportedly paying nearly Rs 55,000 a month towards loan instalments.
Investigators also recovered deleted chats between Subrat and Vishal. Their locations allegedly matched at several points in the days leading up to the murder. Police further claimed that the two had tried to shift suspicion onto Shalu.
Speaking to the news agency, Kanpur Police Commissioner Raghubir Lal said that investigators pieced together the alleged conspiracy through call detail records, CCTV footage, digital and scientific evidence, recoveries and other circumstantial evidence.
According to Lal, Vishal told police that Subrat had asked him to kill his father and allegedly promised him Rs 6 lakh for the job.
‘Take Wife’s Name If Caught’
Police alleged that Subrat had also given Vishal instructions on what to do if he was caught. He was allegedly told to name Shalu as the person behind the murder.
Vishal, who had previously worked for the family, reportedly bought a new SIM card a couple of days before the murder. Police said his first call from the new number was made to Subrat.
During questioning, Shalu, 36, allegedly broke down and told investigators that she had been implicated in the case to protect her husband.
Subrat had remained under suspicion during the investigation and was questioned several times before his arrest.
Police, however, have not given Shalu a clean chit yet. Commissioner Lal said the investigation into her alleged role is still continuing.
