Bengaluru woman and boyfriend arrested for killing husband, four-year-old son; CCTV clues crack case
The deaths of a 36-year-old man and his four-year-old son at their home in Chikkabanavara, Bengaluru, are being investigated as a double murder, with police arresting the man's wife and her alleged boyfriend.
Police identified the accused as A Harini, 26, and Vinay Kumar, a factory worker. The two, who became friends through social media about two years ago, have been remanded in police custody for five days for questioning.
Police said Harini called the control room around 7 am on Monday, claiming that her husband Abhinandan and their son Yaduveer were lying motionless inside their residence in Guddebasaveshwara. When police reached the house, they noticed several inconsistencies. CCTV cameras inside and outside the house had been switched off around 10 pm on Sunday, and there were no signs of forced entry. Investigators found that call logs and messages had been deleted from Harini's phone.
Harini initially gave contradictory answers during questioning before allegedly admitting to the crime, police said.
According to police, Harini allegedly let Vinay into the house around 11 pm. He had been waiting outside for her signal and switched off his mobile phone before entering. Abhinandan was in the bathroom when the attack began. The duo assaulted him and repeatedly dashed his head against the wall before Vinay allegedly choked him.
The commotion woke Yaduveer, who came towards the bathroom and saw his father being attacked. The child screamed on witnessing the assault. Harini allegedly took the child into the bedroom, threatened him and told him to go back to sleep. Vinay then allegedly dragged Abhinandan's body into the bedroom, where the two placed it on the bed.
Police said the duo then decided to kill the child because he had witnessed the attack. Harini and Vinay have given conflicting accounts of the child's death. Harini is said to have claimed Vinay smothered the boy, while Vinay accused Harini of killing him.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northwest Division) Nagesh DL said the accused had initially planned to eliminate Abhinandan, but the situation took a darker turn when the child witnessed the attack. Police suspect the motive was both personal and financial. Preliminary inquiry suggests Harini and Vinay believed Abhinandan's death would leave Harini as the owner of his property, including the family home and three acres of land in Kunigal.
Family members told police that Harini and Abhinandan had a troubled marriage. A relative said Harini left the house in January following frequent disputes but returned after senior family members intervened. Another family member recalled that she left home again around four months ago, leaving behind a note saying she wanted to start a new life. Relatives later persuaded her to return.
Police also recovered a cloth allegedly used to clean blood from the bathroom. Vinay kept his phone switched off while carrying out the crime, and switched it back on only after reaching his home in Harohalli near Kanakapura. Police arrested him from his residence in the early hours of Tuesday.
The PTI report on the arrests said the double murder was uncovered during sustained investigation into the suspicious deaths, following which a case of murder was registered. It quoted the DCP as saying that Harini, along with Kumar, murdered Abhinandan and her son, and that the two were killed by smothering.
(With inputs from PTI)
