Game over for Lucknow youth who killed mother over gambling losses

After losing all his money, he took multiple instant loans through apps, failed to repay, killed mother on suspicion that she saw him steal jewellery, say police

Days after going on the run, a 20-year-old youth, who killed his 45-year-old mother in Lucknow on October 3, was arrested from Fatehpur district on Monday as police revealed shocking details in connection with the murder which took place after the accused lost money on online gaming/betting platforms, banned in India. He killed his mother on suspicion that she saw him stealing her jewellery to repay his mounting debts, the police said.

The police team responsible for cracking the case has been rewarded ₹25,000 (SOURCED)

The accused Nikhil Yadav alias Golu, who lived in the Kalli Paschim area of the state capital, was addicted to online betting and gambling, particularly the “Aviator” crash game hosted through the website tirangagamee.games, police said in a press note.

“Aviator game is a crash game developed by Ukrainian company Spryb igaming (founded 2018), which is addictive (quick decisions, high risk-reward) to lure young people into debt traps and steal money,” read the details shared by police.

“He had lost all his money in online gaming and took multiple instant loans through apps such as MPOKKET ( ₹25,000), Flash Wallet ( ₹2,600), and RAM Fincorp ( ₹2,000) to continue playing. When he failed to repay these high-interest loans, the apps allegedly began blackmailing him,” DCP South Nipun Agarwal said in a press conference.

Additional DCP South Vasanth Rallapalli said the apps are illegal in India as these are not allowed under the Gaming Act 2025

“The accused’s addiction to online gaming and high-interest instant loan apps drove him to commit the heinous act. To clear his debts, Nikhil had earlier sold some of his mother’s jewellery. These predatory gaming and loan platforms push vulnerable youths into debt traps, leading to such tragic outcomes,” Agarwal said.

According to DCP Agarwal, based on technical and manual surveillance, a joint team of PGI police, Southern Zone surveillance cell, and the Crime Team of Lucknow tracked him down and arrested him in Fatehpur.

“The case under sections 103(1) (murder), 238 causing disappearance of evidence, false statements to shield offender) and 315 (dishonest misappropriation of property belonging to deceased) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has been updated with relevant charges following his confession. Police recovered from his possession the murder weapon, a screwdriver and his mother’s stolen jewellery, including a chain, mangalsutra, earrings and tops,” said DCP.

‘Killed mother only over suspicion’

According to police, on October 3, when his mother Renu Yadav returned home, he tried to steal more ornaments. Police also said that he only suspected that his mother had seen him.

“Fearing that she had caught him in the act, he attacked her multiple times with a screwdriver and then hit her with a gas cylinder, killing her on the spot. He fled with the stolen jewellery and murder weapon in his bag,” the DCP said.

False kidnapping claims

After killing her, Nikhil also ransacked the house to make it look like a robbery. He later phoned his father, concocting a false story that unknown assailants had broken in and attacked both him and his mother, the police officials said.

“To mislead his father and relatives, Nikhil made phone calls claiming that unknown men had attacked his mother and were chasing him as well. He then switched off his phone and went into hiding,” said the ADCP.

The police said the postmortem report confirmed multiple injuries on the victim’s body. During interrogation, Nikhil confessed to the murder, according to the police.

The deputy police commissioner rewarded the investigating team with ₹25,000 for successfully cracking the case.