Thane: After 18 days of investigation, the Thane rural crime branch has arrested a couple in connection with the murder of a septuagenarian woman, whose body had been dumped in a lake.
The couple, according to the police, not only confessed to having killed their neighbour, but also said that they hatched the conspiracy to execute the murder after watching a popular TV show - Crime Patrol.
The arrested accused have been identified as Somnath Wakde (37), a driver, and his wife Neelam (31) who works as a teacher in an anganwadi school in Bhiwandi. Both the accused couple and the victim - Sonubai Chaudhary - were living in Choudharpada, Bhiwandi.
The motive behind the killing was to steal Sonubai’s jewellery (worth Rs 2.90 lakh); she happened to be well-off, was getting a monthly pension of Rs 15,000 and both her sons were working in private companies. Incidentally, the Wakde couple were saddled with debts; that explained the motive.
The police claim Neelam is the prime accused, who uses expensive accessories. An investigation officer, who did not wish to be named, said, “During interrogation, Neelam revealed that she got the idea (to commit the crime) from the Crime Patrol show.”
Vainkat Andhale, senior police inspector, said, “On the afternoon of November 21, Neelam entered Sonubai's home and killed her with a wash peddle.
Her husband Somnath, who had just returned from work, instead of informing the police, helped his wife dispose of the body. The couple then hired a friend's vehicle to ferry the body to the lake and dumped it at night-time.”
The duo were arrested after the probe team vetted the CCTV footage in the vicinity and examined the call data records of the suspects in the case, including that of the Wakde couple. Subsequently the police recovered from their house the looted jewellery.