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Bengaluru: A realtor landed in police custody after kidnapping, killing, and burying his friend and business partner 20- feet underground. A month later, he disinterred the body, burned it in a metal drum, and dispersed the ashes in a lake in Doddaballapur (which is around 50 km away from Bengaluru). The realtor, along with his two associates, has been arrested by the police. Investigations revealed that the realtor killed his partner over a debt of Rs 30 lakh that he was unable to repay.According to a Times of India (TOI) report, the victim has been identified as Devaraju NC, 65, of Doddaballapur. The accused include his business partner, Rajkumar S, 47, mason Anil Mora, 40, and daily wage worker Nagappa Sadhu, 35, all from Doddaballapur. Police investigations revealed that Rajkumar owed Rs 30 lakh to Devaraju and killed him to avoid repayment.

What Happened?The report stated that Devaraju went missing on October 17, prompting his family to lodge a complaint with the Doddaballapur Rural Police. Rajkumar was questioned but pretended to be innocent. But then, on October 23, Rajkumar reached Tumakuru police, claiming that he had been kidnapped in a car and attacked by masked men with knives before escaping by jumping out of the vehicle.Rajkumar was admitted to an ICU for a week and later moved to a general ward. By mid-November, he returned to Doddaballapur. Meanwhile, Inspector Sadiq Parsha and his team traced Devaraju's scooter to an isolated area near Vijaypura, about 25 km from his home. When Rajkumar was called in for questioning again, police noticed that many of his stab wounds appeared self-inflicted.Bengaluru Rural District SP CK Baba found Rajkumar's statements suspicious. CK Baba said, "Rajkumar claimed he suspected Devaraju's men had attacked him but could not provide any motive. His statements became increasingly contradictory under questioning," as quoted by TOI. How the Crime Was PlannedFurther investigation revealed that on the evening of October 17, Rajkumar had taken Devaraju in his Toyota Innova. Mora, the other accused was also present. Police began searching for Mora, who had disappeared.Finally, on December 20, police traced Mora to a hideout in his hometown of Kadappa, Andhra Pradesh, and detained him. Mora confessed that he and Rajkumar had killed Devaraju, with Sadhu also involved in the crime. Subsequently, Rajkumar and Sadhu were arrested. Rajkumar admitted to planning Devaraju’s murder to avoid repaying his debt. Police revealed that he took Mora’s help, promising him Rs 5 lakh. On October 14, they used an earthmover to dig a 20-foot-deep pit on vacant land Rajkumar owned near Infocity, Doddaballapur. On October 17, they kidnapped Devaraju. Mora strangled him while Rajkumar restrained him. They buried the body at night and filled the pit with soil. Corpse DisinterredAs construction work began near Rajkumar's land, the group decided to exhume the body. On November 20, they disinterred the corpse and stuffed it into a metal drum. Sadhu joined them at this stage. They poured petrol into the drum, burned the body, and disposed of the ashes in a lake. Rajkumar later fabricated his kidnapping story to divert police attention.IGP (Central Range) Labhu Ram stated that forensic tests, including DNA analysis of hair samples recovered from the lake, would confirm whether they belonged to Devaraju, the TOI report added.

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