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Robbers kill man, leave body at hospital
Gurugram A 33-year-old astrologer was allegedly shot dead by at least two persons in a suspected robbery attempt near Kherki Daula on Sunday night. Police said the
Gurugram A 33-year-old astrologer was allegedly shot dead by at least two persons in a suspected robbery attempt near Kherki Daula on Sunday night. Police said the suspects ferried the victim to a private hospital in Badha village after shooting him in the chest.
The robbers made off with the victim’s car, but then abandoned it four kilometres from the hospital, the police said. Although the victim’s family alleged that the motive was robbery, police officials said that personal enmity could also be the reason for the murder.
According to the police, the victim, Rahul Sharma, left for Gurugram in his Baleno car from his house in Jaipur around 7pm to meet a client and hand over a stone ring. The police said that on the way, at an unidentified location, the two suspects sat inside his car and shot him.
A police officer privy to the investigation, requesting anonymity, said that the suspects parked the car in front of a private hospital and called a staffer of the hospital.
“One suspect kept sitting in the car. As the hospital staffer called more people, the suspects drove away. The car was later found abandoned on Rajpura road, about four kilometres from the hospital,” the officer said, adding that the victim sustained one gunshot wound to the chest.
An autopsy conducted on Monday afternoon, however, suggested that the victim was shot twice and was possibly strangled. Deepak Mathur, the forensic expert who conducted the post-mortem examination, said, “The body had two bullet wounds — one to the chest, which proved fatal, and another to the hand. The pattern of injuries on the neck and body suggests that there was a strangling attempt,” said Mathur.
Preet Pal Sangwan, the assistant commissioner of police (ACP), crime, said that the victim was declared brought dead at the hospital. “The suspects are yet to be identified. The motive could have been loot or personal enmity,” the ACP said.
The police had found Sharma’s mobile phone lying next to his body and contacted his family, who are residents of Sadh Nagar, Palam Colony in Delhi.
In the police complaint, Roop Lal Sharma, the victim’s father, said that he received a call around midnight from the police informing him that his son’s body had been found with bullet injuries. “He had gone from Jaipur towards Delhi in his car to give a stone ring to an acquaintance. I suspect that on the way, robbers shot him dead and stole his car. They dumped the body outside a hospital,” he said.
A case was registered against the unidentified suspects under sections 392 (robbery), 397 (robbery or dacoity with attempt to cause death or grievous hurt), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence), 302 (murder), 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC and relevant sections of the Arms Act at Kherki Daula police station.
