A 24-day search drama staged by a contractor in Karnataka ended in a chilling revelation after police discovered his wife’s body from their house premises in Vijayapura district. Police said Prabhu Ratnakar, 46, murdered his wife Sarojini, 45, on January 24 and buried her in the courtyard of their home in Devara Hipparagi town. He then allegedly pretended to search for her to avoid suspicion and even filed a missing person’s complaint on February 2, claiming his wife had left home on January 24 for shopping and never returned.
According to a report by Indian Express, police registered a missing case and began investigating. However, tracking Sarojini’s mobile phone revealed that it remained inside the house.
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“We found out that Ratnakar was in severe debt and there were cheque bounce cases. But Ratnakar was also searching for his wife relentlessly. He had hired a car and gone to Bengaluru searching for Sarojini. We were in touch with the car driver to understand the locations where he was searching for Sarojini,” said a police officer as quoted by Indian Express report.
Investigators later discovered that while in Bengaluru, Ratnakar stayed in lodges and did not step out to search. “The driver passed us information frequently, raising suspicion,” the police officer said. Suspicion was further fueled when Ratnakar failed to attend the funeral of Sarojini’s ailing father on February 14. He was taken into custody for questioning and eventually confessed.
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Murder And Burial In Courtyard
According to police, the couple argued on January 23 after Ratnakar asked Sarojini for money to resolve a financial crisis. “When she refused, he hit her with a wooden log, and Sarojini died instantly. At the time, their son, Puttaraju, was sleeping in the house. Ratnakar had already dug a small portion of land within the compound to plant some plants, and he scooped out more mud and buried Sarojini’s dead body in the pit,” the police officer said as reported by Express report.
“It is just a 5×3 feet space where the body was buried. It was exhumed and handed over to Sarojini’s family members. Based on the complaint filed by Sarojini’s mother, Kamalavva Maleppa Melinamani, the police have registered a murder case at Devara Hipparagi police station, and investigations are underway,” said the officer.
