Police personnel at the house where the body of a woman, cut into pieces, was found stuffed inside a refrigerator, at Vyalikaval in Bengaluru on September 21, 2024. | Photo Credit: ANI

Suspect in murder of Bengaluru woman identified: Karnataka Home Minister

The husband of the deceased, who had been questioned by the police, had expressed suspicion about the involvement of a person in her neighbourhood who the deceased allegedly had an affair with

by · The Hindu

Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara said that the prime accused in the murder of 29-year-old Mahalakshmi has been identified. The suspect is holed up in West Bengal, he said on September 23.

The culprit had chopped Makalakshmi’s body into several pieces and stuffed them into the fridge in her house at Vyalikaval in Bengaluru before leaving after locking the house from outside.

Four special teams were formed to crack the case. They identified the suspect and are tracking him down, sources said. Bengaluru Police Commissioner B. Dayananda confirmed the development, but refused to reveal further details.

The husband of the deceased, who had been questioned by the police, had expressed suspicion about the involvement of a person in her neighbourhood who the deceased allegedly had an affair with.

After separating from her husband and child, Mahalakshmi stayed with her brother Hukum Singh and his wife for a few days. But they moved to Gunjur after a fight with Mahalakshmi. Since then, she had been living alone. The victim was working in a mall. She had been residing in a rented house for the last five months.

Police personnel at the house where the body of a woman, cut into pieces, was found stuffed inside a refrigerator, at Vyalikaval in Bengaluru on September 21, 2024.

The murder came to light on Saturday (September 21, 2024) when a neighbour noticed foul smell emanating from the house and called Hukum Singh.

Hukum Singh called his mother Meena Rana and sister Lakshmi. He told them to go and check on Mahalakshmi. The mother and daughter obtained a spare key of the house with the help of a neighbour. They found the house ransacked and blood dripping from the fridge. On opening the fridge, they found Mahalakshmi’s chopped body parts stuffed inside. 

The police suspect that the murder could have taken place a fortnight ago, as the body parts were highly decomposed and worms were found in them.

Makalakshmi. Photo: Special Arrangement

Published - September 23, 2024 02:00 pm IST