Ghatkopar double murder: Son confesses, then denies it

Gopalnath Shivaramakrishnan, 47, son of the 79-year-old found murdered along with her younger son at their Ghatkopar flat on Tuesday night, has been giving police contradictory versions about the murders. HT reports.

Gopalnath Shivaramakrishnan, 47, son of the 79-year-old found murdered along with her younger son at their Ghatkopar flat on Tuesday night, has been giving police contradictory versions about the murders.

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“On Wednesday night, Gopalnath confessed to the murders, but denied it a few hours later. He keeps changing his versions. So, we are now looking for evidence so that we can make arrests,” an officer from the Ghatkopar police said.

Gopalnath became the prime suspect in the murders as his bedridden mother Radhabai and mentally unstable brother Jairam did not interact with anyone else, the Ghatkopar police said. Also, nothing was missing from the house.

Gopalnath used to do all the household work, from washing clothes to cooking food, in addition to working as a personal assistant to the Mumbai University vice chancellor.

Deputy commissioner of Police (zone 7) Sanjay Shintre said, “We are currently gathering evidence in the case. We have checked Gopalnath’s phone records and have also questioned his colleagues. We are investigating the case from all angles.”

An officer privy to the investigations said, “The post mortem report showing that the murders could have taken place between 5am and 11am roused our suspicions as Gopalnath was at home till 9am. Secondly, he claimed he made coffee for his mother before leaving for office. But, we did not find anything in the kitchen to support his claim.”

He said when Gopalnath’s colleagues at the university office in Kalina were asked about his behaviour on Tuesday, they said he was calm and did not look nervous.

“If indeed Gopalnath is involved in the murders, we need to ascertain the motive and find evidence before we arrest him. We also need to find out if more than one person was involved in the murder,” the officer said.