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Police question suspects over Bengaluru woman’s murder
Police, on Sunday, said that they have detained and questioned multiple suspects and formed four special teams to probe the brutal murder of a 29-year-old woman, whose body was found dismembered and stashed in a refrigerator in the Malleshwaram area, under the Vyalikaval police station jurisdiction, in Bengaluru on Saturday
Police, on Sunday, said that they have detained and questioned multiple suspects and formed four special teams to probe the brutal murder of a 29-year-old woman, whose body was found dismembered and stashed in a refrigerator in the Malleshwaram area, under the Vyalikaval police station jurisdiction, in Bengaluru on Saturday.
One of the detained suspects is an employee at a nearby men’s salon, who was reportedly close to the victim, Mahalakshmi Das, originally from Nepal. Officers said they were investigating the involvement of two other individuals as well — a man who frequently dropped off and picked up Mahalakshmi from work and a colleague. The exact number of suspects remains unclear. The victim worked as a salesperson at a local mall.
Authorities suspect that the murder occurred several days before the discovery of her body. “A woman’s body was found chopped into pieces and stored in a fridge. The murder likely happened four to five days before the body was found,” said additional commissioner of police N Satheesh Kumar, confirming that the investigation was ongoing.
Preliminary findings indicate that the killer may have dismembered the victim’s body for disposal and evade detection. However, establishing the exact time and date of the crime remains challenging for investigators given the delay in discovering the body and the condition of its remains.
Police are currently analysing CCTV footage and Mahalakshmi’s phone records to track the events leading up to her death. “We are checking her call logs. The victim’s phone was unreachable for days, and neighbours mentioned seeing a man frequently dropping her off,” an officer said, asking not to be named.
Originally from Tikapur village in Kathmandu, Nepal, Mahalakshmi had been living alone in a rented accommodation in Bengaluru, where she arrived five months ago following a separation from her husband, Hemant Das, and their four-year-old son. Their relationship had been fraught because of Mahalakshmi’s alleged interactions with another man.
Officers said the husband remains a key suspect in the case.
The victim’s mother, Meena Rana, registered the FIR. According to the FIR, Mahalakshmi called her parents on September 2 and said she would be visiting soon. “After that, we had no communication with her,” Rana was quoted as saying in the FIR.
Thereafter, the family made a series of calls to Mahalakshmi, which were unanswered, escalating concerns about her safety.
The FIR said that on September 20, around 7.30pm, Mahalakshmi’s elder sister told their parents about a foul smell emanating from the victim’s house. “One Jeevan Prakash, who lived in the same building, told her about it. We could not come to Bengaluru immediately at night,” the FIR said.
The next morning, the family, including the son, eldest daughter Lakshmi and her husband Syed Imran, arrived at the house and found it locked from outside. The family then broke open the door.
When the family entered the house around 12.30pm, they found the house in complete disarray, with clothes, sandals, and household items strewn across the floor. “We noticed blood was dripping from the fridge in the hall,” her mother said. The body was cut into approximately 30 pieces and stored in a refrigerator.
