Mumbai: City crime branch has arrested a 29-year-old woman and her brother-in-law for allegedly killing her brother over his drinking habit and brawls. Reshma Owhal, who has been arrested, said that she committed the crime in an act of self-defense, as her brother was trying to strangulate her after an argument. However, after the incident, she panicked and disposed of his body.
According to the crime branch, Devendra Aakhade, 32 was unemployed and had a drinking problem, and would beat up everyone, including his family members, often in an inebriated state. He was sent to rehabilitation centres to overcome his drinking habit, which however did not transform him.
As per the statement given by Reshma, on December 1, Devendra, in an inebriated state abused her and caught hold of her neck. However, she retaliated and to free from his grip, she held his neck. After a while, Devendra lost his grip and suddenly collapsed, claimed Reshma.
She further claimed that when she saw his motionless body, she panicked and called her brother-in-law for help. Together, they disposed of his body in the bushes along the railway track in Chembur.
The body was found a few days later due to the foul smell emanating from the spot. RCF police then registered a case of murder (302) and causing disappearance of evidence of offence (201) under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections and began the investigation.
Meanwhile, crime branch unit 9 received an information about Reshma's involvement in the crime. A team then traced Reshma from her Govandi residence. During interrogation, she broke down and confessed to killing her brother and disposing of the body with Sumit Patankar, 32, her brother-in-law. Both were arrested late on Saturday night by the crime branch and handed over to the RCF police station for further probe.
