A day after the brutal murder of a daily wage earner inside his house at Kuttakhai Gali under Odia Bazaar, police on Sunday nabbed one of the assailants and recovered the murder weapon from his possession. The other culprit, however, is still at large.
The assailant identified as Sk Kasim alias Kashi (22) of MICA Lane under the same locality was nabbed by Lalbag police from Baunsagali area. He had been hiding in a friend's house after committing the murder. The knife which was used to stab the victim OT Saroj Rao (47) was recovered from him with blood stains on it.
According to police, Kashi and his group of other anti-socials were in confrontation with Rao for sometime now. Knowing that Rao used to live in his house alone, they had been using his verandah as their 'adda'. They used to consume alcohol and drugs openly there to which Rao had been protesting. Kashi had allegedly threatened Rao that he would get rid of him.On Saturday afternoon, Rao was in his house when Kashi and an accomplice got down to their usual business on the verandah. Unable to tolerate anymore, Rao came out and engaged in a heated altercation with the duo. The duo then allegedly pushed him inside the house and began stabbing him.
While both fled the spot, Rao stuttered outside in a grievously injured state and collapsed on the road outside his home. While locals assembled, his cousin Trinath Rao, who works as a salesman, rushed to the spot and found Rao lying dead in a pool of blood.
Police said, Kashi was a criminal with cases ranging from attempt to murder and armed robbery pending against him in several police stations. The accomplice has been identified and will be cornered soon, Lalbag police said.