BHUBANESWAR: Commissionerate Police has made little headway in the murder case of a liquor shop manager at Sriram Nagar under Lingaraj police limits.
The manager, Aditya Pradhan, was hacked to death and his associate Sukesh brutally assaulted by unidentified miscreants who decamped with over ` one lakh which Pradhan was carrying.
The incident occurred at around 11.30 pm on Monday when Pradhan and Sukesh were going to their employer’s home to deposit the day’s earnings after closing the shop.
Sources said police have launched a massive operation in the Capital and its outskirts to trace the accused. Though Quick Action Team and Special Squad of Bhubaneswar Urban Police District (UPD) have been pressed into service, they have failed to nab them.
On the other hand, efforts by Lingaraj police to collect information from locals of Garage Chowk and Sriram Nagar area proved futile. Earlier in the day, a forensic team visited the spot and examined the crime scene.
Police Commissioner RP Sharma said preliminary investigation pointed at two possible motives behind the murder. Besides robbery as a reason, police are looking at previous enmity as a cause too.
Basing on the description provided by Sukesh, sketches of the assailants have been prepared which will be circulated in the public, sources said.