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Raipur lawyer, wife kill client over ₹30 lakh, hide body in cement-filled bag
Paikara was killed at a rented house in Indraprastha Colony on the morning of June 21, the police said.
A lawyer and his wife were arrested in Chhattisgarh's Raipur for allegedly killing a 58-year-old client over ₹30 lakh, which they had taken from the victim as a loan. They later stuffed the body in a suitcase and filled it with wet cement.
The accused has been identified as lawyer Ankit Upadhyay, 31, and his wife Shivani Sharma, 24. The victim, Kishore Paikara, was Upadhyay's client.
Paikara had been demanding that Upadhyay return ₹30 lakh borrowed from him, Raipur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Lal Umed Singh told reporters.
Vinay Yadu (23) and Suryakant Yadu (21) were also arrested for allegedly helping the couple dispose of the body, he added.
Paikara was killed at a rented house in Indraprastha Colony on the morning of June 21, said Singh.
The body was found in a big bag on the roadside on June 23, when passersby reported a foul smell coming from it. The victim's legs were tied, and his throat was slit. The body was encased in the trolley bag.
How was the victim killed
CCTV footage showed that three men and a woman transported the bag in the boot of the car. The accused also used a fake number plate to deceive the police.
The police identified the car and approached the owner, who said he had sold the car to Upadhyay. They also found that the bag had been purchased from the Gole Bazar area, and payment was made online from Shivani Sharma's account.
The trunk arrived at their house in an e-rickshaw. The couple's landlord said they rented the house only last week.
They fled to Delhi after murdering the man. They were, however, nabbed at the Delhi airport.
Upadhyay told the police that apart from being a lawyer, he used to sell and purchase land, and had helped Paikara sell his house in Bajrang Nagar for ₹30 lakh. He had then borrowed the amount from Paikara for some personal work.
The victim was demanding it back, which allegedly led to the conspiracy to murder him.
He bought a second-hand car using a fake Aadhaar card. He then rented a house. He then drove the victim to the house and killed him by slitting his throat with a knife.
The Alto car used in the crime, two two-wheelers, and five mobile phones have been seized from the possession of the accused.
With inputs from PTI
