BENGALURU: Kengeri police have arrested a 24-year-old data entry operator for allegedly murdering her house owner for gain.
The accused has been identified as Monika. She allegedly killed Divya, her house owner, on May 10 to help her boyfriend purchase a vehicle and also clear her debts by selling the valuables of the deceased.
Monika, who hails from Kolar, had rented a portion of Divya’s house at Konasandra.
The victim’s husband, Gurumurthy, runs a salon at Shivanapalya in Kengeri. Gurumurthy’s mother left home for work in the morning when the murder took place. Divya was at home with her two-year-old child when Monika strangled her to death and escaped with a gold chain weighing 30 grams. She later pledged the gold chain with a local pawnbroker.
Gurumurthy constructed the house four months ago. Monika had come with her boyfriend and introduced him as her husband to take a portion of the house on rent. Later, she stayed there alone.
The accused is said to have quit her job a few days ago and was finding it difficult to clear her debts. The murder came to light when Divya did not respond to Gurumurthy’s calls. Gurumurthy also called Monika to know if Divya was at home. But Monika told him that she had gone out. When Gurumurthy went home after a few hours, he saw his wife dead inside a room.
The accused did not escape after committing the murder. As there was no forcible entry into the house, the police suspected that the accused was known to the family.
The accused was taken to the station for questioning where she confessed to the killing, according to police sources. Further investigations are on.