Greater Noida murder suspect nearly pulls off perfect getaway
The man murdered his wife and two children three years ago as he wanted to settle down with a woman he was in an extramarital relationship with, zeroed in on another man who somewhat resembled him in appearance as well as build, murdered him and passed it off as his own death.
Sensational details emerged of a Greater Noida family’s murder on Thursday, a day after police arrested a 38-year-old man who almost pulled off a perfect getaway.
The man murdered his wife and two children three years ago as he wanted to settle down with a woman he was in an extramarital relationship with, zeroed in on another man who somewhat resembled him in appearance as well as build, murdered him and passed it off as his own death, police said after the arrest of five of his accomplices.
Those arrested were identified as Rakesh, 38, his father Banwari Lal, 65, mother Indirawati, 62, two brothers Rajiv, 36, and Pravesh, 34, and a woman constable, Rubi, 30, who was in a relationship with the main accused Rakesh, police said.
Rakesh, from UP’s Aligarh, lived with his family in Chipyana Buzurg in Greater Noida. Botre Rohan Pramod, superintendent of police, Kasganj, said Rakesh worked as a medical lab technician from 2011 to 2018 and he was aware of certain aspects of forensic investigations.
“Rakesh married Ratnesh in 2012 and they had two children – a three-year-old daughter and an 18-month-old son. However, he was also in a relationship with Rubi, and he wanted to marry her. On February 14, 2018, he killed his wife and children with an iron rod and buried their bodies in their house’s basement and destroyed evidence,” he said.
The suspect fled the spot after the crime. While Ratnesh’s family filed a complaint of abduction against her husband, Rakesh’s family members filed a counter-complaint of abduction against his in-laws at Bisrakh.
To pass himself off as dead, Rakesh planned another murder. Pramod said Rakesh identified a vulnerable friend, Rajendra alias Kalua, who was similar to him in appearance and build, and took him on a motorcycle from Aligarh to Kasganj on April 26, 2018.
“On the way, Rakesh offered drinks to Kalua and then killed him with a sharp weapon. He decapitated the victim’s head and hands to ensure the investigators would find no concrete evidence or fingerprints and threw the body near a railway track. The suspect wrapped the victim in his clothes and planted his ID in his pocket,” the SP said.
Rakesh’s family members, who were aware of the conspiracy, allegedly reached the spot and claimed the victim was Rakesh. They also filed a case of murder against Rakesh’s in-laws. But police probed the matter and evidence and DNA reports revealed the deceased was Rajendra and not Rakesh.
On the other hand, Rakesh made a fake Aadhaar card with an assumed identity as Dilip Sharma, a resident of Kushinagar. He shifted base to Panipat, Haryana, where he worked as a mason. “He underwent nose surgery in order to change his identity,” SP said. On Wednesday, Rakesh came to meet Rubi in Kasganj when he was arrested.
Ankur Agarwal, additional deputy commissioner, Noida Central, said police excavated the burial spot and found some parts of skeletons. “The samples are being sent for forensic examination and DNA testing. A case of murder will be filed in Noida, too, once the report corroborates the murder theory,” he said.