JAGATSINGHPUR: Body of a young woman, purportedly a nurse who had gone missing from Cuttack on September 8, was recovered from the banks of Biluakhai river within Biridi police limits on Tuesday.
The decomposed body was found to be stuffed inside a sack and dumped near the river bed. Nearby villagers spotted the sack and informed police on Tuesday. On opening the sack, police found the body of a woman with hand tied behind her back. The woman appeared to be murdered though no visible signs of injuries were found on the body.
The victim was later identified as Niharika Patra (24) of Balianta in Khurda district by her family members including her mother, brother and sister. They had rushed to Biridi after getting news of recovery of a woman’s dead body there.
The victim’s mother Pratima Patra lodged an FIR with Biridi police basing on which a case was registered. Sources said Pratima has named one Kishore Ojha alias Raja as a suspect in her complaint.
Niharika was working as a nurse in MM Nursing Home in Cuttack City. She was seen leaving the nursing home with Raja at around 4 pm on September 8. As she did not return, the owner of the nursing home had lodged a missing complaint in Madhupatana police station the next day.
Sub-Divisional Police Officer Prakash Chandra Pal said the body has been sent to SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack for autopsy. A forensic team has been pressed into service to find out the cause of her death. “No injury marks were visible as the victim’s body was decomposed,” he added.
Notably, there have been number of instances in the past where bodies of women were found in sacks at different areas of Jagatsinghpur district. In March, 2017, police had recovered the decomposed body of a girl from an iron trunk from Dhartangada forest.
Last year, the body of another girl was found stuffed in a sack from the same forest.