Online gambling addict kills elderly woman for gold, sets house afire; had ₹2 lakh debt

The incident took place in Zatewada on August 14, the Bhiwandi taluka police station official said.

Published on: Aug 19, 2024, 12:06:16 IST

By HT News Desk

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A 35-year-old man allegedly killed a 74-year-old woman in Maharashtra's Thane district to steal her gold ornaments. After committing the crime, he set the house on fire to destroy evidence. The man is an online gambling addict, said the police.

Abhimanyu Gupta (35) attacked Sevamary Augustin Nadar when she was alone. (Representational)

The incident took place in Zatewada on August 14, the Bhiwandi taluka police station official said.

The accused has been identified as Abhimanyu Gupta. He allegedly attacked Sevamary Augustin Nadar when she was alone and killed her. He then looted the house and stole her gold ornaments. He later set the house afire to destroy evidence. The police, however, traced and arrested him on Saturday.

"Abhimanyu Gupta (35) attacked Sevamary Augustin Nadar when she was alone, slit her throat and fled with gold ornaments. He then set the house on fire to destroy evidence. We traced him to a lodge in Thane and arrested him on Saturday. He has been charged with murder and other offences," the official said.

Abhimanyu Gupta was addicted to online gambling. He lost over ₹2 lakh. To recover the losses, he planned the robbery at Nadar's house.

Also read: UP man, addicted to online gaming, kills mother to claim life insurance

The accused used to work at the dairy run by Sevamary Augustin Nadar's son. He knew about the family from there.

He has been remanded to police custody till August 28.

"Gupta had worked in the dairy run by the victim's son, so he had details of the family etc. He has been remanded in police custody till August 28," the police told PTI.

Also read: Teen takes money from friend for online gaming, gets killed on failing to repay

In February, a man addicted to online gaming murdered his mother in Uttar Pradesh. He killed his mother in a bid to claim her life insurance payout and settle his massive debts

The man wanted ₹50 lakh insurance payout.

According to police, Himanshu was deeply immersed in gaming on the popular platform. His addiction drove him to borrow money repeatedly to continue playing, resulting in a debt of nearly ₹4 lakh, police said. Faced with mounting creditors, he devised a plan to repay his debts.

With inputs from PTI

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