Karkala: Suspected Suicide of Woman Turns out to be Rape, Murder
Daijiworld Media Network - Karkala (NM)
Karkala, Jul 12: The death of a dalit woman, suspected to be a case of suicide, has now turned out to be case of rape and murder. The 44 year-old victim was raped and thrown into a well, investigations have revealed.
A gang of three persons allegedly raped Uma, wife of Chukuda of Belvai. Accordingly, police have arrested the Dinakar Mogera (22), resident of Belvai, Kesarugadhe.
Dinakar along with his two friends reportedly took the victim to one of the rooms at an old commercial complex in Belvai town, where she was made to drink alcohol and allegedly raped.
However, the trio sensed trouble when the victim began having difficulty in breathing after she was raped. "We then decided to throw her in the well," admitted Dinakar before the police.
It may be recalled that on May 2, a half naked body of Uma was found in a private well behind the bus stop at Belvai.
Two days before the body was found, Uma's family members had lodged a missing complaint in Moodbidri police station in this regard.
It was reported that Uma was seen in Belvai on April 29. Therefore, it was suspected that the incident must have taken place on the same day or thereafter.
It is learnt that due to the constant torture from her husband, Uma, mother of two, had turned mentally ill. It was therefore suspected that she must have committed suicide.
Accordingly, Chukuda, Uma’s husband was arrested for inquiry, and the incident was tagged as a suicide.
Cable wire theft brought the incident to limelight
A case was registered on Monday July 9 that telephone cable wires were being stolen in the region of Sanoor of Karkala.
In this regard, investigation was carried out in the region. On Tuesday, the police arrested alleged Dinkar, who was suspiciously standing in the premises of Sanoor Math.
On interrogation, Dinkar not only admitted that he stole the telephone cable wires and a pump set but also that he and his friends had raped Uma and thrown her into the well even while she was alive.
The police have confiscated the telephone cable wires, pump set, a sickle that was used for the theft, and Rs 26,400 in cash.
Earlier, several other theft cases were registered against Dinkar in the Karkala and Moodbidri police stations and consequently he was jailed.
It is said that he was in the habit of escaping without paying bills after drinking in bars and wine shops.
Town police officer Pramod Kumar P, Probationary PSI Gaviraj, Surendra Shetty, Shivanand Poojary, Prakash K, Prakash, Dinesh, Narasihma, Praveen, Nivinchandra, Arun Kumar, Suresh Shetty and other constables took part in the investigation.