The Tumakuru second Additional District and Session Court on Monday convicted a private firm employee for murdering his estranged wife six years ago sentencing him to life term imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh.
The accused, identified as Lohit, working as a graphic designer at a private firm was married to Arpitha, 20, and later got separated over a marital dispute. After separation, Arpita was staying at a paying guest accommodation and was working as an attendant at a petrol pump station in Yeshwanthpura.
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According to the police, the victim was using a mobile phone gifted earlier by the accused. The accused suspected the victim of having an affair following the separation so he asked her to return the phone but she reportedly refused. This enraged the accused, who hatched a plan to kill her, police said.
As per the plan, on February 2, 2019, the accused met the victim at her workplace and took her out for dinner on the pretext of getting back together. The duo had dinner and he even got her ice cream before taking her to Kunigal on the pretext of a long ride. When they reached an isolated place, the accused pushed her down from the bike and later stamped her to death, the chargesheet said. He had destroyed the blood-soaked clothes he wore.
The Kunigal rural police, who recovered the body, identified the victim by her petrol station uniform and informed her parents.
Based on the parents’ complaint, who suspected Lohith’s involvement in the death, a team of police led by Inspector Ashok Kumar police gathered the CCTV camera footage and the call detail records to confirm his role and later arrested him. The police recovered the mobile phones, burnt clothes, slippers, and the bike used by the accused.
Published - February 11, 2025 10:09 pm IST
