Defence officer’s killing: Family suspects role of professional hitman
Prasad was seated on a roadside park bench near his housing society, when the killer came from behind and shot him in the neck at point blank
A day after 67-year-old retired defence official Hari Prasad was shot dead while seated on a park bench near his home in Greater Noida West, his family members said his wallet and gold ring were not stolen, and only his old mobile phone was missing, raising suspicions of a professional hit job, even though they are certain that neither he nor they had any personal or professional enemies.
Investigators said Hari Prasad, who hailed from Agra, resided in Stellar Jeevan Society with his son, Praveen Kumar, who works in Central Bank of India in Delhi. Prasad was seated on a roadside park bench near his housing society, when the killer came from behind and shot him in the neck at point blank.
Police were alerted by the security supervisor of Stellar Jeevan Society on Wednesday around 12.30pm, after he heard the gunshot and rushed out to find Prasad on the bench, bleeding profusely from the neck.
Prasad’s son Praveen Kumar said, “On Wednesday morning, I was at office when I received a call from Bisrakh police that my father was shot dead. He had left for a walk after breakfast and was killed while seated on a bench in a crowded park.”
“I don’t know how he could be killed in such a crowded place without anybody noticing anything. We do not have any family or professional disputes with anyone. We are puzzled as to why he was killed in such a manner,” he said.
“We suspect the killers were professionals hired to execute the murder. We came to know that his wallet carrying ₹9,000 cash and a gold ring were intact on his person, but his five-year-old smartphone worth ₹10,000 was stolen,” said Kumar,
“His mobile phone remained switched off after the robbery and murder. Late at night, when I checked messages on my phone, I saw an alert that his mobile phone was available for calling around 6.30pm but later was switched off again,” he said.
“I don’t know why somebody would kill a retired man who rarely spoke to anyone. He had fewer contacts and no disputes with anyone. He moved in with us in 2021 after the death of my mother,” said Kumar.
Prasad was posted in Agra from where he retired in 2015 as a senior auditor in the controller of defence (CDA), pension department.
A senior police officer said, “He was shot dead from point-blank range and the area where the incident took place is not under CCTV surveillance.”
“The post-mortem report of the deceased revealed that he died of a gunshot wound. A bullet was retrieved from his body and forensic teams are ascertaining the type of firearm used to kill him,” said Shakti Mohan Avasthy, the new deputy commissioner of police of Central Noida.
The DCP further said a team has also been assigned to probe the last location of his stolen mobile phone and so far, no evidence has been collected from the CCTV cameras.
A case of murder was registered against unidentified suspects at Bisrakh police station on Wednesday and six teams have been formed to crack the case. Further investigations are underway.