Dentist among three arrested for killing mother-in-law

The Koratagere police in Tumakuru district cracked the case of the murder of a 43-year-old woman and arrested her 47-year-old son-in-law [a dentist] and two others on Monday.

The accused, Ramachandraiah S., and two of his associates allegedly strangled Lakshmi Devi in a car and took the body to an arecanut farm belonging to Satish K.N. They chopped the body up and dumped the pieces along the way to Mutyalamma temple in Chimpuganahalli on the outskirts of Koratagere on August 7, said the police.

The accused later went to Dharmasthala. Passers-by noticed some of the pieces wrapped in a plastic cover and alerted the police.

Tumakuru Superintendent of Police K.V. Ashok formed a special team which recovered 19 body pieces from in and around the area before identifying the deceased as Lakshmi Devi. The police zeroed in on Satish’s farm, based on various leads.

Based on Satish’s alleged confession, the police arrested his cousin Kiran K.S., a farmer, and Ramachandraiah when he was returning from Dharmasthala.

An inquiry revealed that Ramachandraiah married Lakshmi Devi’s daughter a few years ago after filing for a divorce from his first wife.

The police said that Ramachandraiah allegedly accused his mother-in-law of having multiple affairs and used to have frequent fights with her.

“He roped in Satish, who worked as a systems administrator at a private firm. The duo used to meet regularly and were walking partners,” said the police.

Ramachandraiah allegedly offered him ₹4 lakh for the job. Satish also roped in his cousin Kiran, said the police.

As per the plan, the accused waited in a car when Lakshmi Devi was returning home after visiting her daughter on August 4. The accused offered to drop her at the bus stand and strangled her in the car, said the police.

When Lakshmi Devi did not return home, her husband, Basavaraju, filed a missing complaint, which helped the police identify her body based on physical description.