Man, partner held for killing wife in Manesar after month-long hunt

Police said the accused allegedly shot the 22-year-old woman in a rented house before fleeing through Haridwar to Nepal and returning to Rishikesh.

A 25-year-old man and his 38-year-old partner were arrested for killing his 22-year-old wife in Manesar and fleeing to Nepal, police said on Sunday.

Investigators said the husband underwent a hair transplant and pierced both ears to alter his appearance while evading arrest. (File photo)

According to the police, the accused were residents of Manesar and Aurangabad village in Jhajjar. Both returned to India on June 30, were caught near Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, brought back to Gurugram on Saturday, and subsequently arrested, police added.

Investigators said the husband had spent hefty money to get a transplant done at Rishikesh along with both ears pierced to change his appearance.

Police said the couple got married in February this year. The murder came to light on May 22 after the victim’s mother filed a missing person complaint at Manesar police station, alleging that her daughter disappeared a day earlier. She suspected the involvement of her husband and in-laws.

Within hours of the complaint, police recovered the body from bathroom of a house in Manesar. The victim had a gunshot wound in the head.

Sandeep Turan, public relations officer of Gurugram police, said the house was a rented accommodation belonging to the partner.

“Both the accused had been in a relationship for nearly three years. On May 21, the husband allegedly lured the victim to the room and shot her dead. They then locked the house and fled,” he said.

Turan said the accused had procured a country-made pistol from Uttar Pradesh around two months before the crime. “After the murder, they fled to Haridwar and then crossed into Nepal to evade arrest. They had returned and were living together in Rishikesh ,” he said.

Both the accused were produced before a court on Sunday and taken to five-day police remand for interrogation. “Investigation is underway,” Turan added.