Man kills ailing brother at home, tries to pass it off as suicide

After the postmortem report ruled out suicide as the cause of death, police registered a murder case against the accused under section 103 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and placed him under arrest on Wednesday

NAVI MUMBAI: A 45-year-old man allegedly strangled his terminally ill younger brother at their residence in Khanda Colony, Panvel, and tried to pass off the death as a suicide, though the police noticed discrepancies in his account and arrested him for murder after the postmortem report ruled out suicide as the cause of death.

Man kills ailing brother at home, tries to pass it off as suicide

According to the police, the two brothers lived in a two-storey house in Sector 7, Khanda Colony. The accused worked as a clerk with the electricity department and lived alone on the ground floor, as his wife and two kids had reportedly deserted him. His younger brother, who worked earlier as a plumber and was unmarried, lived on the ground floor.

“Both kidneys of the younger brother were damaged and he was HIV-positive, in an advanced stage of illness. He also reportedly struggled with alcohol dependence and his elder brother had been looking after him and attending to his daily needs,” a police officer said, requesting anonymity.

The accused claimed that around 3am on Wednesday, his younger brother hanged himself to death using a nylon rope. The Khandeshwar police initially registered an accidental death report, but the accused’s statement and circumstances at the crime scene raised doubts.

During interrogation, the accused claimed that before hanging himself, his younger brother had come to his bedside.

“This claim was difficult to reconcile with the deceased’s severely deteriorated health and physical condition, which reportedly left him incapable of moving around independently,” the investigating officer said.

Investigators also observed that the nylon rope reportedly used in the crime was hung from the ceiling, which the deceased could not have done owing to his medical condition, said senior police inspector Smita Dhakane.

As the postmortem report subsequently ruled out suicide, they registered a murder case against the accused under section 103 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and placed him under arrest on Wednesday. On Thursday, he was produced before a court, which remanded him in police custody till November 7.