How shocking murder of Bengaluru woman found in refrigerator unravels – Firstpost

A similar case to the Shraddha Walkar murder case was reported from India's tech capital Bengaluru. A 29-year-old woman was found murdered in her house in Vyalikaval in Bengaluru. Her body was dismembered and kept in a refrigerator.

The incident came to light on Saturday after neighbors noticed a foul smell coming from the one-room apartment and alerted her family. The case sent shockwaves across the country.

Here's everything we know about the case.

The cruel murder

The victim was identified as H. Mahalakshmi Das, a mall employee and resident of Pipeline Road in Vyalikaval.

It was the foul smell that caught the attention of the neighbors, who informed Mahalaxmi's brother, Ukkum Singh.

Mahalakshmi's mother and elder sister entered the apartment and found the front door locked from the outside. There were insects and blood stains on the refrigerator.

The family opened the single-door refrigerator and discovered the dismembered body, unconscious from shock.

The body was reportedly dismembered into nearly 50 pieces and stored in the 165-liter refrigerator that was left on.

Accordingly The new Indian ExpressThe victim's severed legs were placed on the top shelf of the refrigerator, the remaining body parts in the middle, and she herself in the lower part.

The strong smell caused some police officers to vomit, while others who arrived at the scene wore double masks.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (West Zone) N Satheesh Kumar said, “It seems like it happened four-five days ago.” He said the dog squad and forensic experts had arrived and started investigations.

The Bengaluru Police have filed an FIR under Section 103 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for the murder.

The motive for the murder is still unknown. The victim's body was sent for autopsy on Sunday and the results are awaited.

Also read: Why a 24-year-old woman was brutally stabbed to death in Bengaluru PG

Maggots near the refrigerator, bad smell

In her complaint, Mahalakshmi's mother, Meena Rana (58), said they were informed about the foul smell a day before the murder was discovered.

A neighbor of the victim had informed her brother Ukkum about the smell.

“On Friday, my eldest daughter Lakshmi told me what the neighbour Ukkum Singh had told, but since it was already 7 pm, we decided to visit Mahalakshmi's residence the next day. On Saturday, I visited the house with Lakshmi and her husband Imran and found that the door was locked from outside,” she said in her complaint, adding that they had entered the apartment using a spare key from another neighbour.

“When we entered the apartment, we found that it had been completely ransacked. Clothes, slippers, bags and a suitcase were lying around in the living room.”

“There were some maggots near the refrigerator and it looked like there were blood stains too. When I opened the refrigerator, I ran outside in shock to inform my son-in-law Imran. He immediately called the police,” she said.

About the victim

The 29-year-old victim, Mahalakshmi, worked as a team leader at Fashion Factory, a clothing store in Malleshwaram. According to News18she hasn't come to work for the last two weeks.

She has been living in a rented apartment on the first floor of a G+3 building for the last five months.

Her family came from the Nepalese village of Tikapur in Kathmandu and had moved to Bengaluru about 35 years ago.

Besides Mahalakshmi, Meena Rana and her husband Charan Singh have three children: Lakshmi, Ukkum and Naresh.

According to her mother, Mahalakshmi was married to Hemant Das, who lives in Nelamangala with their four-year-old daughter. He runs a mobile accessories shop. Das arrived at the scene of the accident soon after the incident came to light.

The estranged husband has told police that he had filed a complaint against Mahalakshmi with the Nelamangala police in February this year after she allegedly assaulted him for not giving her money. He also told reporters that Mahalakshmi had earlier also filed a complaint against him over a marital dispute.

He said Mahalakshmi separated from him in October 2023 after he allegedly found out about their affair. Mahalakshmi was renting the apartment in Vyalikaval at the time.

The victim's brother Ukkum and his wife Deepika reportedly stayed with her for about 15 days. However, after an argument with Mahalakshmi, Ukkum and his wife moved to Marathahalli, according to Indian Express.

The victim's mother said she visited her daughter frequently to check on her.

According to her statement, the last contact between her and the victim took place on September 2, when the daughter said she would visit her soon.

Special teams formed, one arrested

Four special teams were formed to investigate the case.

According to the News18 Police reportedly found a blue suitcase and investigated whether the attacker was trying to get rid of the body.

Police believe the murder may have taken place around September 2, the day Mahalaxmi's phone was last active. They are also investigating the possibility of multiple killers.

“It is surprising that none of her family members have tried to contact her for so long. We will question them about this,” an official said, according to The Times of India.

According to The Hindu, an employee of a nearby men's salon, who was allegedly close to the deceased, was arrested. He reportedly visited Mahalakshmi the day before her murder.

The victim's estranged husband also suspects the man of being involved in the murder.

Police are also investigating the roles of two other men: one drove her to and from her workplace, the other is being questioned because he was close to the victim at work.

According to another report from The Times of IndiaThe suspect, who hails from an eastern state and works in Bengaluru, allegedly confessed to one of his family members about Mahalakshmi's murder and went into hiding in West Bengal. Teams have been sent to the state to find clues.

The police also assume that the body was dismembered elsewhere and then brought into the apartment, as no blood stains were found in the toilet, bedroom or hallway.

Similarly terrible case

The case has parallels to the gruesome murder of 27-year-old Shraddha Walkar in Delhi's Mehrauli district in May 2022.

She was strangled by her partner Aftab Amir Poonawala, 29, and her body was chopped into 35 pieces.

The body parts were kept in a 300-litre refrigerator in the residence for almost three weeks before being distributed across town.

With contributions from agencies