CHANDIGARH: Six days after the heinous crime, three Nepali nationals have been arrested for allegedly murdering a 77-year-old woman in a village in Rohru Subdivision of Shimla district in Himachal Pradesh.
The alleged accused have been identified as Lal Bahadur (28), a native of Jalma village in Nepal; Naveen (19) and Santosh (20), both residents of Jhadeli village in Nepal.
All three were working as labourers in an apple orchard owned by a resident.
Talking to the media, Additional Superintendent of Police (City) Shimla, Mehar Panwar, said that the police got information on June 16 that Geeta Devi (77) of Shalash Dogri village in Rohru was found dead in her home.
As per the initial probe, many unknown people had entered her house with the intention of theft and had murdered her.
Followingly, the forensic team collected the crucial evidence, including biological and physical evidence, which led to the conclusion that the case was a murder.
"As there were no eyewitnesses, no CCTV cameras were installed at the house and its nearby vicinity, and no significant theft of valuable property was confirmed at the scene,” she said.
Panwar said, "Information obtained following the questioning of the family members of the deceased, acquaintances, intelligence and technical inputs, the CCTV footage from the cameras installed along the route leading to the scene, and suspicious vehicle movements were studied."
Mobile tower dump data was thoroughly analysed as well.
Scientific, technical, and human evidence were linked and based on the evidence obtained during the investigation, the three alleged accused were arrested on June 22 as they were present near the crime scene on the day of the murder, through technical analysis.
Based on evidence, the suspects were interrogated, during which they confessed to killing the woman. A stick used by the accused to attack the woman was also recovered.
Panwar claimed that the alleged accused had confessed that they entered the house with a motive of theft and stole Rs 10,000, along with a golden pendant from the house.
She added that further investigation is underway.