Bengaluru
oi-Madhuri Adnal
A series of searches found on the laptop of 25-year-old techie J Kenneth has emerged as a key detail in the investigation into the Seegehalli triple murder, with police finding that he had used AI to ask about ways of attacking and overpowering people before the killings.
The searches were not limited to one method. Police found queries about using a kitchen knife to kill, using vinegar and chilli powder or chilli paste to blind people, breaking the knees of three people and overpowering three people who had entered a house in an isolated area.
Investigation into the Seegehalli triple murder reveals J Kenneth used AI to research attack methods before allegedly killing three people on June 22, following confrontations over ₹52 lakh in loans.
Kenneth had also searched for information about some of the deadliest weapons used to kill people.
The searches were recovered when the laptop was examined by the forensic science laboratory. Police said the questions appeared in the dropdown window on Google. Investigators, however, have not established what answers Kenneth received from the AI tool.
The timing of the searches has drawn the attention of investigators. They were made before June 22, when Kenneth allegedly attacked his live-in partner Shwetha’s parents and sister at their apartment in Seegehalli.
A senior police officer said Kenneth frequently interacted with AI.
“He never asked AI what the punishment for murder would be or whether it was right to kill people who were questioning his financial inability,” the officer said.
Police also found a bottle containing vinegar mixed with chilli powder at the apartment. DCP (Whitefield division) Saidulu Adavat said the bottle had been sent to the FSL for examination.
Loan pressure preceded the attack
The financial dispute involving Kenneth and Shwetha is detailed in the 2,085-page chargesheet filed before the city court.
According to the chargesheet, Shwetha had taken loans amounting to Rs 52 lakh within a year for Kenneth. The borrowing included a Rs 30 lakh business loan, two personal loans of Rs 8 lakh and Rs 6 lakh, and Rs 8 lakh borrowed from friends, relatives, classmates and colleagues.
The repayment problems eventually reached Shwetha’s parents’ home when the bank that had provided the business loan sent a notice there.
Somasundar, 55, and Muthulakshmi, 50, then learnt about the amount their daughter had borrowed, allegedly to support Kenneth.
The issue led to a confrontation between Shwetha and her parents. Somasundar later questioned Kenneth about the money and the notices being sent to the family over the unpaid loans.
Days later, the dispute turned deadly.
What happened inside the apartment
On the night of June 22, Somasundar, Muthulakshmi and their 20-year-old daughter Supriya were allegedly attacked inside their apartment at Sai Green Apartment complex in Seegehalli.
Somasundar suffered multiple injuries but managed to leave the apartment and reach the staircase. He alerted security personnel and others, telling them that Kenneth was attacking his wife and daughter.
He was taken to a private hospital, where he later died.
Muthulakshmi and Supriya were found with multiple stab injuries and also died.
Shwetha’s statement, recorded before a court, forms part of the chargesheet. In it, she described how Kenneth allegedly attacked her parents and sister while she watched.
The laptop searches, the bottle recovered from the apartment and the financial dispute are among the material examined by police as part of the investigation into the three deaths.
