Bhubaneswar: Odisha Police has arrested two more persons for the murder of a 25-year-old traffic police constable in Bhubaneswar, an officer said.
The deceased, Subhamitra Sahoo, a native of Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district and posted in Bhubaneswar, disappeared after leaving home for duty September 6.
He body was found buried in a jungle in Keonjhar district, around 170 km away from Bhubaneswar, September 17, police said.
Her body was exhumed the same day and handed over to the family after autopsy, they said.
On Wednesday, police arrested her husband, Deepak Kumar Rout (39), the prime accused in the case.
Thursday, two more persons, Binod Bihari Bhuyan (38), a cousin of Deepak, and Sambhunath Mahanta (23), were arrested for alleged involvement in criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence.
The body was buried in an open space behind the house of the accused Mahanta, the officer said, adding that all three accused have been produced before the Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM), Bhubaneswar.
During the investigation, police also found that Deepak and Subhamitra had registered their marriage in court July 23, 2024.
According to police, Sahoo had been demanding Rs 20 lakh from Deepak to organise a social ceremony to formally announce their marriage, which led to a dispute between the duo.
Police suspect that a financial dispute was the motive behind the crime.
Following Deepak’s arrest, police found that Deepak was previously married to a woman named Aparna Priyadarshini from Dhenkanal in April 2018.
Aparna died in what was reported as a road accident in March 2022.
It was also alleged that Deepak had received a Rs 1 crore payout from Aparna’s life insurance policy.
Speaking to reporters, Aparna’s sister said Deepak had informed them about the accident, which allegedly took place near Khuntuni police station while they were travelling from Dhenkanal to Bhubaneswar in their car.
“He initially asked us to come to the accident spot and then informed us that he had taken her to SCB Medical College and Hospital. Later, we received another call stating that she had been shifted to a private hospital in Cuttack,” she claimed.
When the family reached the hospital, Aparna was no more. At that time, everyone presumed it was a road accident, she added.
“However, after the murder of woman constable Subhamitra, we suspect that my sister was murdered. A high-level probe should be conducted to unearth the truth,” the woman demanded.
Meanwhile, members from Odisha Congress’s women wing took out a candlelight march here and prayed for the eternal peace of Subhamitra.
PTI
