Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Jan 12: A case initially suspected to be the death of a woman software engineer due to suffocation following a fire accident in an apartment has taken a shocking turn, with police revealing that it was a case of sexual assault and murder.
The mobile phone of the deceased techie, Sharmila, was found missing, and an open window along with the absence of any clear cause for the fire raised serious doubts. The disappearance of her phone ultimately helped the police crack the case of rape and murder.
A second PUC student, who lived in a neighbouring apartment, has been taken into custody on charges of sexually assaulting the woman and killing her by strangulation. He allegedly attempted to destroy evidence and portray the murder as a death caused by a fire accident. The accused has been identified as Kuralai, a native of Kodagu, who is studying second PUC at a private college. The victim, Sharmila Ramamurthy, a native of Dakshina Kannada, was residing at Subrahmanya Layout in the city. The accused lived next door to her apartment.
Police said they received a call around 10.45 pm on January 3, reporting a fire on the third floor of the apartment complex, following which fire and emergency services and police rushed to the spot. Initially, it was suspected that the woman had died due to suffocation. However, the open window in the room, the missing mobile phone, and the absence of any source that could have caused the fire posed a challenge to investigators.
The police and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) teams raised several suspicions during the investigation. There were no signs of a short circuit or gas explosion that could have triggered the fire. The window of the room where the body was found was open, raising doubts about the suffocation theory. Moreover, the body was not found in the victim’s bedroom but in her flatmate’s room. The flatmate was out of town at the time of the incident.
Further, Sharmila’s mobile phone was missing. Since the apartment was locked from inside, the police were initially puzzled about how the accused had entered the house. A friend of the deceased had expressed suspicion over her death and lodged a complaint, following which a detailed investigation was taken up, police said. After analysing technical evidence and tracing the missing mobile phone of the deceased, the police identified and nabbed Kuralai.
During interrogation, the accused reportedly confessed that he entered the house around 9 pm through a sliding window with the intention of seeking sexual favours. When the victim refused to cooperate, he allegedly sexually assaulted her. As she resisted, he forcibly covered her mouth and nose with his hands, causing her to lose consciousness.
The victim also sustained bleeding injuries. Fearing that he would be caught, the accused allegedly set fire to the victim’s body and other items in the room in an attempt to destroy evidence. He then fled the scene with her mobile phone. The police recovered the phone and took him into custody on Saturday. A case has been registered under BNS Sections 103, 64(2), 67 and 238.