Belagavi (Karnataka), Apr 10 (PTI) A woman and a man she was allegedly in a relationship with were arrested for murdering her husband and trying to pass it off as a natural death, police said.
The deceased, identified as Avinash Ashok Suppanna (40), was an Ayurvedic therapist and a resident of Babale Galli in Angol. The couple have two children, police said.
The accused—Kailash Balakrishna (43), who runs a mobile phone shop nearby, and the deceased’s wife, Lakshmi Avinash Suppanna (29)—confessed to the crime, following which they were arrested, police said.
Lakshmi is a housewife, though she occasionally assists her husband at the clinic, they added.
According to police, on April 6, Kamal Ashok Suppanna filed a complaint at the Tilakwadi police station stating that her son Avinash had died after sustaining a head injury at Ankush Ayurvedic Care Clinic in Angol on the evening of April 5.
She suspected foul play, following which a case was registered, and a probe was initiated.
Addressing reporters, Belagavi Police Commissioner Bhushan Borase said that from the beginning, the statements of the deceased’s wife were inconsistent and lacked clarity.
“If it had been an accidental fall, there might have been one injury. However, there were four injury marks on the head,” he said.
During the post-mortem, doctors also found internal injury to the heart, which strengthened suspicion, he added.
“Our forensic team, including scene-of-crime officers, conducted bloodstain pattern and luminol analyses at the scene. The version given by the wife did not match the evidence found at the spot. Based on these scientific findings, our suspicions were confirmed,” he said.
“We also obtained several clues through technical intelligence. Based on this, Kailash Balakrishna and the victim’s wife, Lakshmi Avinash Suppanna, confessed to the crime,” he said.
According to the officer, the duo had planned the murder together. Kailash allegedly went to the clinic and assaulted Avinash with a gas cylinder, while Lakshmi remained at home.
Avinash had four injuries on the head and was also assaulted on the chest with the cylinder.
Prima facie, the motive appears to be an illicit relationship, with the husband seen as an obstacle.
Initially, the deceased’s wife told police that her husband had low blood sugar and high blood pressure, and might have fallen and hit a table, he said.
“But from the beginning, we had doubts about her statement,” Borase said.
On the nature of Lakshmi and Kailash’s acquaintance, the officer said it would be known in detail during the investigation.
“The complaint was filed by the victim’s mother. Initially, we registered it as an unnatural death, suspecting a fall. But after examining the scene, the post-mortem report, and the bloodstain pattern analysis, our doubts grew. The forensic team did very good work in this case, and their findings confirmed our suspicion,” he added. PTI COR AMP SSK
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