Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal
Bantwal, Jul 29: The 2nd additional district and sessions court in Mangaluru on Tuesday, July 28, sentenced three individuals, including a caretaker, to life imprisonment for the murder of a 73-year-old woman for gain in 2021.
The victim, Benedict Carlo (73), was a resident of Ammunje in Bantwal. The convicted individuals are Elma Preshchith Barreto (23) of Amtady, who worked as Carlo's caretaker, her friend Satish Naik (28), and Charan Kumar (31), both residents of Narikombu.
According to the prosecution, Elma hatched a conspiracy to rob the elderly woman of her gold jewellery. With the help of Satish, she initially attempted to kill Carlo by lacing her food with poison. When the attempt failed, the duo enlisted the help of Charan Kumar. On the night of January 25, 2021, the three accused smothered Carlo to death. They then made away with 61.070 grams of gold jewellery, valued at approximately Rs 3 lac at the time, and attempted to destroy the evidence.
A case was registered at the Bantwal rural police station under sections 302, 392, 120 (B), and 201 read with section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Then Bantwal rural police station sub-inspector Prasanna M S took the accused into custody. The investigation was spearheaded by then Bantwal circle inspector T D Nagaraj, who gathered crucial evidence and submitted the charge sheet before the court.
Pronouncing the verdict on Tuesday, judge Jagadeesh V N found all three accused guilty of the crime and handed them life sentences. Public prosecutor Jyothi Pramod Naik presented the arguments on behalf of the state.