NALGONDA: Four persons have been arrested in connection with the sensational murder of four members of a family in Nalgonda town and remanded to judicial custody.
Addressing a press conference on Friday, Nalgonda Superintendent of Police Sharath Chandra Pawar said the murders were driven by personal grudge, financial distress and the intention to rob the victims of cash and gold. The conspiracy was allegedly hatched by the deceased woman’s niece, her husband Syed Aslam and his associate.
Police seized a Mahindra Marazzo car, `3 lakh in cash, a knife allegedly used in the crime, three mobile phones, a five-tola gold lump and land and bank documents. A case has been registered under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The murders came to light on June 22 after local residents alerted police about a foul smell emanating from a house in Telangana Colony on Sagar Road. Police found the decomposed bodies of four family members and formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which cracked the case using CCTV footage, technical evidence and local enquiries.
The arrested persons were identified as Syed Aslam and his wife Tabassum of Gandipet, Mohammed Sohail of Bandlaguda and Hemanth Kumar, a jewellery shop owner from Dilsukhnagar, Hyderabad.
According to the police, Aslam had borrowed Rs 1 lakh from Haseena, Tabassum’s maternal aunt, and later sought another loan after falling into financial difficulties. When she refused and demanded repayment of the earlier loan, the couple allegedly decided to rob her. Investigators said Aslam gathered information online to plan the crime before travelling to Nalgonda on the night of June 19.
Around 5 am as Haseena opened the door to step outside, Aslam ambushed her, slitting her throat and leaving her bleeding heavily. Hearing her screams, Sultan rushed out to escape, but Aslam overpowered him and cut his throat as well. Muzammil, waking up to the commotion, tried to flee but ended up fighting back with an iron rod. Though Aslam sustained deep cuts to his left index finger and both feet during the struggle, he managed to hack Muzammil to death.
During the chaos, Sultan’s 12-year-old daughter, Afkoora, hid under a bed. Realizing she had witnessed his face and could expose him, Aslam dragged the young girl out from under the bed and brutally stabbed her in the neck to eliminate any witnesses.
Police said Aslam later pledged the stolen gold through Sohail with Hemanth Kumar, owner of Sri Balaji Jewellers in Dilsukhnagar, for `5.3 lakh. The four accused were arrested near the Narkatpally flyover on Friday. Earlier, Haseena’s daughter from first marriage and son-in-law were suspected to be behind the murders.