Unverified help held for killing 80-yr-old

Woman was found strangled with her hands tied in bathroom; domestic help, aide arrested from Nepal border, HP.

Almost two months after an 80-year-old woman was brutally killed at her residence in south Delhi's Jungpura, the police have arrested two Nepalese nationals, including her domestic help, for the murder.

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While Jagat Bahadur, 19, the victim's domestic help, was apprehended from the Indo-Nepal border, his accomplice Karan Bahadur, 24, was arrested from Kotkhai Tehsil in Himachal Pradesh.

On October 31, Bimla Shah was found strangled in her bathroom with her hands tied with a cloth. Cash and valuables worth over R1 lakh were found missing from the house. Her son was in Singapore with his family on vacation, the police said.

Amulya Patnaik, joint commissioner of police (southern range), said the victim's family had not verified the antecedents of Jagat before employing him.

"We have been appealing to people to conduct police verification of servants before hiring them. People should be extra cautious when it comes to the safety of senior citizens."

Ajay Choudhry, additional CP (southeast), said, "During investigation, it was learnt that the family had hired Jagat as a domestic help just a month before the incident. He was missing since the murder. We focused our investigation on his involvement and collected details about him."

The first breakthrough, Choudhry said, came after they traced one Prakash who had introduced Jagat to the Shah family. investigation revealed Jagat was hiding in Nepal and his partner-in-crime Karan in Himachal. They were arrested on different dates.

"Their interrogation revealed they had hatched the plan along with their accomplices, Chandra and Lalit, at Mukherjee Nagar a couple of days before Diwali. On that day, they entered the victim's room, overpowered her and strangulated her in the bathroom. They all consumed liquor at the house before decamping with the booty," said a senior officer.