By Express News Service
BENGALURU: A day after Kannada journalist and editor of Hi Bangalore Ravi Belagere was arrested for allegedly paying supari to murder a fellow journalist, he was interrogated by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) for hours.
Belagere is currently lodged at the CCB headquarters, where a team headed by a DCP and ACP began the interrogation on Saturday morning.
A senior officer from the CCB said that during the interrogation Belagere had confessed to a personal rivalry with his former colleague Suneel Heggaravalli. But he told police that he had not given his weapon to sharpshooter Shashidhar Mundewadi.
"It is too early to reveal the details of the investigation as we are gathering all evidence to prove Belagere had given 'supari' to Mundewadi to kill Heggaravalli," the officer said.
In his statement to the CCB, Suneel Heggaravalli said that Belagere had called him to his office on a Saturday this year on the pretext of introducing him to some investors to run a news channel.
"Belagere told him that the investors had come from Hyderabad and made him sit in the office more than two hours. While Heggaravalli entered the office he had noticed a couple of sharpshooters at the entrance and he grew suspicious over Belagere's meet on that particular day. He managed to leave the premises by stating that he was getting an emergency phone call from his family and immediately informed a senior police officer that he was being targeted by Belagere. The same statement will be recorded before the magistrate on Monday", the officer said.
Belagere on Saturday was subjected to a medical test due to his illness before CCB began interrogation and the officials may take him for spot mahazar at Uttarahalli where the conspiracy was planned by shooters Mundewadi and Viju Badigera, who tried to shoot Heggaravalli.
The duo did not get a proper chance to kill Heggaravalli as he was moving next to the wall of his apartment and CCTV cameras were fixed there facing the opposite direction, the officer added.
