Daijiworld Media Network - Sullia/Mangaluru (JD)
Sullia/Mangaluru, Jul 7: Police arrested an accused in the murder of a woman in Subramanya here on Wednesday July 6.
Karunakar (53) was arrested for the murder of Vedavathi (45), a resident of Mettinadka. The murder took place on April 16 this year.
Vedavathi
Karunakar and his wife
Karunakar
Addressing a press meet in Mangaluru on Thursday July 7, SP Bhushan G Borase said that the police have recovered stolen gold ornaments worth Rs 2 lac from Karunakar.
Vedavathi, wife of farmer Jayaram, was alone at home at the time of the incident. The murder came to light when Vijith, a relative, visited the house and found Vedavathi lying dead in the kitchen. Her ornaments had gone missing.
The police who took up the investigation were clueless at first. After questioning several people, checking call records of suspects and with the help of fingerprint and forensic experts who inspected the crime spot, the Puttur police zeroed-in on Karunakar and kept a close watch on his movements. A team of 10 experienced cops was formed and help was also sought from Bengaluru cyber crime branch.
Following the murder, two protests were held and the police were given a deadline till July 7 to nab the culprit, the SP said.
Karunakar, who happens to be Jayaram's neighbour, got admitted to a private hospital in Puttur. The police, in order to make sure he did not escape from the hospital, took him into custody soon after he was discharged and based on the details revealed during interrogation, concluded that he was the accused.
SP Bhushan said that Karunkar was in dire need of money, and had borrowed from many. He owed a debt of Rs 30 lac to various people. "On April 16, Karunakar went to Vedavathi and asked her to lend him her gold and money. When she refused, he murdered her," the SP said.
Sources said that Karunakar had already taken gold from Vedavathi without Jayaram's knowledge. He mortgaged the gold for money. When the wedding of a close family member approached, Vedavathi demanded her gold back, but unable to get back the gold on time, he decided to finish Vedavathi, sources said.
After committing the murder, Karunakar allegedly tried to destroy all traces by cleaning the room in which the murder took place and also the knife used for the crime. On the way back, he threw away his mobile phone at Ubaradka. After his arrest, he was taken to the spot for identification.
It is also suspected that Karunakar's wife abetted the murder, as some of the gold was hidden in the house. She was taken into custody and released after interrogation.
The SP said that Karunakar was accused in a forgery case about five years ago.