While selling online saves a lot of hassle, one might have to be careful of offenders and murderers.
A 35-year-old techie, who was found dead in his apartment in Bengaluru on August 5, was allegedly murdered by a man who wanted to buy the techie’s bike, after seeing an ad on Facebook. The techie reportedly died on August 3 but the incident came to light only two days later.
The deceased techie identified as Sohan Haldar hails from West Bengal and lived in a 4 BHK flat in Prestige Shantiniketan along with three other techies from Andhra Pradesh, Mumbai and Chennai, reported TNIE.
Bengaluru police have nabbed a person named Karthik M Doulath in connection with the crime. Investigations revealed that Karthik was a habitual offender.
According to Bangalore Mirror, Karthik met Haldar upon seeing the advertisement where he put his KTM Duke 390 bike up for sale on the Facebook Page ‘Second to None’. Karthik, who met Haldar on August 2, had a test ride on the bike and was interested in buying it.
It is reported that the accused stayed over at Haldar’s house on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Karthik bought 100 grams of silver potassium cyanide powder from a goldsmith's shop in Peenya.
“On Wednesday, Doulath reportedly consumed alcohol with the victim. While Haldar was resting, the accused put a spoonful of cyanide in the victim's mouth. When Haldar started vomiting, the accused rushed to the kitchen to get `glucose' for the victim. Instead, the accused brought a glass of water mixed with cyanide and a spoon of sugar. Haldar consumed the liquid and started to struggle. The accused covered the victim's face with a bedspread, and also held his hands and legs tightly. After the victim died, the accused pulled the room doors behind him, and fled with his mobile phone, ATM cards, cash and the bike which was parked in the basement,“ said an officer who is part of the investigations.
However, the incident came to light on Friday only after Haldar's colleagues came in search of him, as he did not report to work. The accused had taken the bike to his residence and was trying to sell it.
Kadugodi police, who had registered a case, thought the victim may have died of excess drinking. However, when they found the bike missing, they realised that something was amiss. CCTV footage showed the accused leaving on the bike.
“We obtained the Call Detail Record (CDR) of the victim and found that he had spoken to the accused extensively. Then we tracked the accused and arrested him on Wednesday. After questioning him, he confessed to having killed Haldar. The stolen valuables have been recovered intact,“ the officer said.