Shock waves in Doon as youth found murdered in the heart of the city

A youth was found murdered in the heart of Dehradun Monday sending shock waves across the state capital. The body was found near New Empire Cinema Hall, which is quite close to the Clock Tower and at a stone’s throw away from a major police station of Dehradun.

The deceased has been identified as Yatin Verma, a resident of Bageshwar district of Uttarakhand, who worked in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The youth was an engineer by qualification.

The body was spotted by passersby who then informed the police. The site falls in Kotwali police station area. It appears that the youth was shot in the head from a point blank range.

Deputy inspector general of police (DIG) of Garhwal range, Pushpak Jyoti, who inspected the crime site, said, “According to preliminary investigation, it appears that he was murdered elsewhere and the body was thrown at the site later on. We are investigating all angles.”

The police was pursuing all traditional methods including forensic examination to solve the case, he added.

The fact that the body was found near the Dhara Chowki — a prominent police outpost near Clock Tower — has raised questions on the law and order situation in the state capital.

As per the police, Yatin had arrived in Dehradun on November 14 and stayed at a hotel, close to the site where he was found murdered. Sources said he had vacated the hotel a day later, and there was no trace of his activity thereafter. “The mobile number he had written in the hotel register, too, was not functional since the past few months,” a police official said.

Apparently, the youth’s family was not aware about his visit to Dehradun, which has added further mystery to the motive behind the murder.

The DIG also later held a meeting with representatives of local traders’ association, directing them to install close circuit television (CCTV) cameras in their respective premises.

First Published: Nov 27, 2017 21:04 IST