New Delhi, March 2: Police say they have identified the killer of the woman with a peacock tattoo on her stomach, whose body was dumped at the New Delhi railway station on February 11. It was her boyfriend with whom the 28-year-old had been living in since June last year while making her family believe she was in Singapore, claim cops, reports Times of India.
They have released the photograph of main accused Raju Gehlot, 29, an Air India steward who has not been reporting for work since June last year and has been absconding since the murder. Police have arrested Raju`s cousin, Naveen Shokeen, for sheltering the accused and helping him with money after the crime. But the cops do not yet have a motive for the crime and are also not sure what took place on the night of February 10-11, when the crime supposedly took place.
Police said it seems the victim, Neetu Solanki, was not been killed by one person. "We will know these details only after we arrest Raju, who is hiding somewhere in Delhi," said an officer.Neetu had earlier worked in BPO firms Teleperformance, Daksh and Convergys. She quit her job and moved in with Raju last June telling her west Delhi family she had got employment in Singapore. Raju too hid his whereabouts from his family, which lives close to the woman`s family. But the girl`s family had of late come to know that the couple was in Delhi, cops said.
The two last stayed at a rented house near Ashram in southeast Delhi, police said. For getting the Ashram accommodation, Raju used a false name, Sandeep Kumar Pal, and even furnished an election ID card (E-112, Hari Nagar, Lucknow) by that name."We have recovered several stamp papers from the rented accommodation and the crime team has visited the spot. We believe Raju was involved in some unlawful (cheating) activities," a police officer said. "The couple could have been buying cars through loans and selling them to clients, but we are verifying this."
Cops said Neetu and Raju met at a party. "They were introduced by common friends. It was love at first sight and they decided to live together," said an investigating officer. Afraid that her family would not approve of Raju, Neetu cooked up the story about getting a foreign job. "She even called her family members from a Bangalore number while staying in Delhi itself. The couple travelled to Dubai in June and then briefly went to Bangalore. In Delhi, they first lived in Sarai Kale Khan, then moved to Kilokri village and finally to Hari Nagar near Ashram area in January," said the officer.
Additional DCP (crime) Sanjay Bhatia said the police got a breakthrough in the case on February 24. "On that day, a person by the name of Kartar Singh Solanki of Matiala village in west Delhi claimed that the body found at the railway station was that of his daughter, Neetu," he said. Kartar said he had learned Neetu was staying somewhere in Delhi with Raju of Nawada village near Uttam Nagar and may have also married him. He said he had not met Neetu after May 2010 but she remained in touch with the family through telephone and internet.
Investigators said Raju was in contact with some of his relatives and was getting logistical and financial support from them. The police then zeroed in on Naveen Shokeen, Raju`s cousin who lives in Nangloi, west Delhi and owns an ice factory in Gurgaon."Naveen revealed that about 5am on February 11, Raju had called him and asked for his Skoda car. On sustained interrogation, Naveen admitted that Raju had told him he had killed Neetu and needed the vehicle for disposing of the body. He also said Raju had murdered the victim with a blow on her neck with a sharp-edged weapon," DCP (crime) Ashok Chand said.
According to Chand, Naveen told the cops that Raju had stuffed the body in an air bag and taken it to the railway station. "We do not know whether he hired an auto to the station but it is clear there was no other person accompanying him" said Chand.Naveen also disclosed that Raju stayed over at his house on February 13. He again stayed at Naveen`s house from February 20 to 25. Naveen also gave him Rs 5,000. "Naveen has been arrested under 212/202 IPC for intentionally harbouring and concealing the accused in a murder case,`` said Chand.
Neetu had done her LLB from DU`s Law Faculty and BA through correspondence along with a computer course from a professional institute. Raju has a diploma in French from a south Delhi institute. Raju graduated from the College of Vocational Studies and then completed his Master`s in Tourism from the same institute. He joined Indian Airlines in 2006 and later shifted to his official accommodation at the Air India Colony in Vasant Vihar. On February 11, Neetu`s body was found in a bag lying at a parking lot in New Delhi Railway Station. Since the body was not identified, it was kept preserved for days. The postmortem was later conducted and the body cremated on February 23, a day before her father approached the cops.
