BHUBANESWAR: Bhubaneswar police went on a manhunt across six cities in five states over the past week before pinning down 40-year-old Balabhadra Maharana from Gujarat’s Vadodara district on Wednesday for the murder of Kunjalata Nanda, wife of a divisional forest officer.
Maharana was the 76-year-old woman’s caretaker for over five months. On the night of November 3, he allegedly strangled Kunjalata and assaulted her with a blunt object, inflicting fatal injuries. He then decamped with cash and gold jewellery, the total value of which is yet to be ascertained. The murder took place in Budhanagar area under Laxmisagar police limits.
Maharana, a native of Tangi in Khurda district, was intercepted while travelling by bus towards Delhi in Vadodara. Police tracked him using his mobile phone location. The accused was brought to Odisha on transit remand on Thursday and will be produced before a court, said Police Commissioner S Dev Datta Singh.
Following the brutal murder, police had constituted three special teams to trace the accused. CCTV footage and human intelligence were used to track his movements as he repeatedly changed locations to evade arrest. Police Commissioner Singh said Maharana was traced to Puri on November 4, before moving to Kolkata on November 6. He subsequently travelled to Ranchi, Panipat on November 9 and then Surat in Gujarat.
“He then travelled towards Delhi before moving towards Vadodara. A team led by SI Subhasmita Muduli of Laxmisagar police station, with assistance from Gujarat police, intercepted and apprehended him in Vadodara district while he was heading towards Delhi again by bus,” said Singh.
Police recovered Rs 20,600 in cash, two mobile phones, an Airtel SIM card, a gold locket, a gold ring, a pair of earrings, a small diary and relevant documents from his possession. Singh said Maharana was travelling alone when he was arrested. However, police are investigating whether anyone else was involved in the crime.
Maharana had been working as a caretaker at Kunjalata’s residence for over five months. He was engaged by a relative who worked as a domestic help at the elderly woman’s son’s residence for more than seven years.
The accused was also staying on the top floor of the victim’s house. Taking advantage of the fact that the elderly woman was alone at home on November 3 night, he allegedly killed her and fled with the valuables on a two-wheeler.
