With the arrest of two persons, the Rohtak police on Saturday claimed to have solved the murder mystery of 26-year-old Neeraj, a resident of Ismaila village, whose beheaded body was found lying in a pool of blood at the village waterworks on June 15 morning.
The accused have been identified as Ravinder, alias Nanha (30), and Jatin, alias Baaman, both of same village, while the third accused, Sachin, alias Kale, remains at large.
The police are conducting raids at his suspected hideouts to apprehend him. Sachin is Neeraj’s neighbor.
Rakesh Malik, DSP Sampla, stated that Neeraj’s fellow villagers had been found involved in his murder due to an old enmity. After bludgeoning him with bricks and a liquor bottle, the accused severed Neeraj’s head from his body using a ‘kassi’ (a spade-like farming tool), he added.
“As per the investigation, Neeraj had gone out with his friends Rajendra and Sandeep in a car on June 14 evening. They purchased liquor from the Sampla bypass and consumed it under the Jhajjar-Rohtak flyover. Although Neeraj wanted to drink more, the others refused and dropped him off in the village. While he was walking back to his house, the three accused, Sachin, Ravinder, and Jatin, encountered him on the way,” he maintained.
The DSP further informed that Sachin took Neeraj on his motorcycle to the Chuliyan turn and bought more liquor.
“Thereafter, they reached the waterworks via a route along the canal, where they drank together. Later, the accused assaulted Neeraj with bricks and a liquor bottle. Once he lost consciousness, they severed his head from his body and fled the spot,” he added.
Malik informed that Sachin had been released from jail on bail on June 3 and is an accused in three cases of theft and one of snatching, while two others did not have any crime history.
“Over five years ago, Neeraj’s family was involved in a scuffle with Sachin’s family, during which Sachin’s father sustained injuries. To settle the score, Sachin perpetrated the crime. Efforts are underway to apprehend him, while Ravinder and Jatin have been taken into police remand to extract further information about the crime,” he added.
Notably, the Sampla police had registered a case against unidentified persons in connection with Neeraj’s murder, based on a complaint filed by his brother, Naresh Kumar.
Following the murder, the family had refused to permit Neeraj’s post-mortem examination until the accused were arrested. After a three-day standoff, the family relented, and the body was cremated after the post-mortem was conducted.
