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Meghalaya murder: Last voice message to family from Indore tourist's wife adds to chilling puzzle
The newly wed couple from Indore were on their honeymoon and went missing on May 23. The husband's body was found while the search continues for missing wife.
The murder of Raja Raghuvanshi, a tourist from Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, in Meghalaya has become a puzzle for the local police. Compounding that is the fact that Raja’s mother got a voice message from his wife, Sonam Raghuvanshi, who has since been missing.
The newly-wed couple, who were in Meghalaya for their honeymoon, went missing on May 23.
Hindustan Times earlier reported that multiple agencies were investigating the case, and the body of Raja Raghuvanshi was found on Monday, with the police identifying him by a tattoo on his arm.
Raja’s mother received the voice message from Sonam the same day that the couple went missing, and it was the last known contact. Sonam can be heard short of breath in the recording, telling her mother-in-law that she was trekking to a waterfall and refusing to break her religious fast. According to a Times of India report, the call ended suddenly and was the last time anyone heard from the missing wife.
The Meghalaya Police has recovered a black raincoat near a viewpoint during the ongoing search for Sonam Raghuvanshi.
According to the officials, the coat recovered by the rescuers appears to have a certain stain, but they refused to confirm if it was blood. The cops are trying to ascertain if the coat belongs to Sonam.
"We have recovered a black field coat that appears to have certain stains, but we cannot confirm if they are bloodstains. Only forensic analysis can determine that. We are comparing the recovered items with available footage to verify if the coat belongs to the missing woman. However, we can only confirm that after further examination, especially since the coat is a size 3XL raincoat," SP Vivek Syiem told ANI.
Investigation so far into the murdered tourist and his missing wife
Multiple agencies on Wednesday continued to comb the rugged and forested terrain in Meghalaya in search of the missing woman, even as they recovered a smashed mobile phone and a machete from a gorge, where her newly-wed husband’s body was found near the Weisawdong Falls on Monday.
Police said there was no breakthrough in the efforts, including aerial operations, to trace Sonam Raghuvanshi after her husband Raja Raghuvanshi’s body was found after a drone spotted it.
The cops have registered a homicide case and described Sonam Raghuvanshi’s disappearance as inexplicable.
“It is very unusual...while we found Raja’s body, there is no trace at all of Sonam. She seems to have vanished, despite the vast and relentless search operation,” SP Vivek Syiem said.
Foul play is being suspected in the case, and investigators believe Raja Raghuvanshi’s death was not an accident. A Special Investigation Team has been constituted to probe the case.
The scooter the couple rented was found abandoned in Sohrarim, about 25 km from the gorge, with the key in the ignition. Heavy rainfall and strong winds over the past week hampered the operation for the couple’s search.
On Monday, a police drone spotted Raja Raghuvanshi’s body deep in the gorge. A white shirt, medicine, part of a phone screen, and a smartwatch were also recovered from the scene. The body was identified by a tattoo on his right hand reading “Raja”.
(With inputs from David Laitphlang)
