Bengaluru: Bengaluru Police have retrieved a taser that was allegedly used to assault Renukaswamy, a 33-year-old pharmacy employee who was murdered earlier this month, allegedly by Kannada film actor Darshan Thoogudeepa and his aides.
According to the remand note furnished before the 24th Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Bengaluru Thursday, accused Dhanraj gave a “voluntary statement” that he was in possession of the taser.
“A-9 (Dhanraj) isn’t disclosing where he purchased the electric shock torch and is trying to hide details…we have to probe him further on this,” the police’s remand note read.
According to the autopsy report, a portion of which is mentioned in the 16 June filing, Renukaswamy died due to shock and haemorrhage as a result of multiple blunt injuries.
Darshan and three others will be in police custody till Saturday, while the remaining 13 accused in the case — including Darshan’s partner and co-star Pavithra Gowda — were sent to judicial custody Thursday.
Darsha, Gowda and 15 others have been booked on charges of murdering Renukaswamy on the night of 8 June near Rajarajeshwari Nagar. The pharmacy employee had allegedly sent lewd messages to Gowda on a social media platform.
Renukaswamy’s body was found the next day near Sumanahalli bridge, about 10 kilometres away from the scene of the crime. On 10 June, three men had walked into the Kamakshipalya police station and admitted to the murder. Darshan’s name cropped up while they were being questioned.
In the remand note, the police said their investigation has established that Gowda was the “main reason” for the crime and that she provoked and hatched a conspiracy with the other accused.
The police further stated that it was with common intention that the accused carried out an “inhuman and murderous” assault on Renukaswamy, and the same has been proved through scientific and technical evidence.
The police have sought more time to question the accused as well as bring in additional witnesses.
Darshan’s lawyer Ranganath Reddy told reporters Thursday: “It is very surprising that they (prosecution) have said they found some witnesses.”
The advocate added that the defence will review the final remand note and then apply for bail.
In the remand note, police said they wanted to question Darshan to probe the source of the Rs 37 lakh cash they found with him. According to investigators, Darshan had taken Rs 40 lakh cash from one Mohan Raj, allegedly to escape legal action, cover up the conspiracy and destroy evidence.
‘Darshan called several people after murder’
Darshan spent time talking to “several individuals” on the phone after the murder, according to the latest remand note.
Police sources said, adding that these calls were made to arrange cash to pay the “fall guys” as well as other influential individuals to help keep his name out of the case.
Cash worth Rs 37.4 lakh was recovered from Darshan’s home on 19 June.
According to the earlier remand notes, Darshan allegedly paid Rs 5 lakh each to at least four aides to surrender before the police and admit to the crime.
The notes further stated that Darshan had “misused” the law by using his money and getting his fans and others involved in the crime, and then used the same lot to destroy evidence and used influence to not be named in the case.
“After the act, the accused hatched a conspiracy and with the intention to destroy evidence, allured people with criminal backgrounds with money to shift the body from the place of the crime to another is something that has been established during the course of the investigation,” one of the remand notes states.
Accused Darshan, Raghavendra, Kartick and Keshavamurthy have been booked in previous cases.
The police further said that if they are given bail, the accused may use their influence to destroy evidence, intimidate witnesses and impede the investigation.
On 15 June, during a search carried out in Chitradurga, investigators found Rs 4,40,500 in cash, a gold chain and ring of the victim at the residence of accused Raghavendra, who is district president of the Chitradurga chapter of the Darshan Fans Association.
Raghavendra, along with Jagadish (Jaggu), Annu Kumar, Raju and Ravi (driver) are accused of abducting Renukaswamy from Chitradurga and bringing him to Pattangere shed in Bengaluru’s Rajarajeshwari Nagar, where the 33-year-old was assaulted and murdered.
The police have also sought more time with some of the accused who allegedly destroyed evidence and were not cooperating with the investigation. Moreover, they suspect that people working in the shed where Renukaswamy was assaulted may have witnessed the murder but have been paid money to stay mum.
‘Blood stains, CCTV’
The police have arrested a total of 17 people so far and are questioning others who may have some knowledge about the crime or were seen with Darshan on the day of the murder.
After disposing of the body, the mobile phones of Raghavendra and Renukaswamy were allegedly thrown into a drain by Pradosh, says the latest remand note.
On 10 June, four individuals surrendered before the Kamakshipalya police station, but on further questioning, Darshan’s name came up.
The remand note states that during inspection of the shed where the murder allegedly occurred, the police were able to collect blood stain samples from a security room, a Scorpio car used to transport the body, CCTV footage and toll receipts between Chitradurga and Bengaluru, footwear and clothes worn by various accused and a megger, allegedly used to either torture the victim or attempt to revive him.
The police also retrieved CCTV footage from Darshan’s home, along with clothes — a blue pair of jeans and a black T-shirt. However, they had to trace the shoes the actor was allegedly wearing during the murder, which were eventually found at the home of his estranged wife, Vijayalakhsmi.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
Also Read: Hunt for Instagram user, cab to Bengaluru — how Kannada actor Darshan, aides ‘planned’ murder