The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Recovery of murder weapon fails to help police probe

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Mar 31, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Recovery of murder weapon fails to help police probe

By Marri Ramu

HYDERABAD, MARCH 30. Every aspect in connection with the watchman's murder at actor Balakrishna's house in Jubilee Hills on August 18, 2004, is shrouded in mystery. But, what continues to baffle the police is the recovery of a bloodstained butcher's knife from the actor's house, three days after the murder.

Earlier, they had combed every nook and corner of the house and found nothing incriminating.

The police had kept their `finding' under wraps hoping to get a breakthrough in the investigation. However, what they perceived as a major lead turned out to be a puzzle.

Bloodstains match

A chemical analysis of the bloodstains on the knife matched with the blood samples of the victim, Loknath Shail, conclusively proving that the knife indeed was the murder weapon. But, this only added to the confusion.

Forensic experts feel that the assailants washed the knife after committing the murder and kept it in the house.

"The culprits probably thought they had cleaned the knife properly. Only after a careful examination did the forensic scientists find traces of blood," a police officer, seeking anonymity, said.

But, even this important clue could not lead the police anywhere. In fact, the case got even more complicated with several new questions arising.

How is that the bloodstained knife escaped the police eye on the first day when they virtually scanned the entire place? Who had left behind the weapon, which was noticed by the police after three days and why did they do so?

In case the assailants had abandoned the knife, why did they clean it and `ensure' that the police laid their hands on it? Does this mean the culprits were able to move around the scene of offence after committing the murder?

These were some of the questions making the job of the Banjara Hills police more difficult.

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