Kendujhar: Police cracked the murder of 27-year-old Sujit Mahanta alias Mantu and arrested three persons in connection with the crime. The accused, identified as Raje Bentkar, 25, Binod Naik, 26, and Suresh Munda, 25, were arrested and produced in court. Police said the murder was premeditated and stemmed from an extramarital relationship with the mother-in-law of the prime accused Raje Bentkar. Further investigation is underway.
According to police, an unidentified body was recovered June 5 near the Rai suan railway overbridge on National Highway 20 under Kendujhar Sadar police station limits. Around 27 days later, Jogendra Mahanta of Kusumula village lodged a missing person complaint, stating that his son Sujit Mahanta, alias Mandu, was untraceable since July 2. Police linked the missing person complaint with the body recovered earlier and launched an investigation. A DNA test subsequently confirmed that the body was that of the missing youth.
Police said Sujit was allegedly involved in an illicit relationship with a widow from Gopinathpur village, which had caused resentment among her family members for a long time. On the day of the incident, the woman’s son-in-law, Raje, allegedly caught Sujit in a compromising position with her. He then called his two associates, Binod alias Kalia and Suresh of Harshapur village. The three allegedly assaulted Sujit black and blue.
During the attack, Raje struck him on the head with an axe, killing him on the spot. The accused then stuffed the body into a gunny bag and transported it in an auto-rickshaw belonging to Suresh. They dumped it on a plot owned by Rasananda Jena near the Raisuan railway overbridge. They also allegedly washed the vehicle in an attempt to destroy evidence.
Acting on the directions of Kendujhar Superintendent of Police Kusalkar Nitin Dagudu, Sadar police intensified the investigation. They seized the accused’s mobile phones and other materials and questioned the three based on scientific evidence and other leads. All three allegedly admitted their involvement in the murder, police said. A case (377/2026) was registered, and the accused were produced in court. Sadar police station IIC Amit Kumar Bhuyan said further investigation is on.
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