Bengaluru Murder Case: On September 25, the accused, Mukti Ranjan Roy, was discovered hanging from a tree in Bhadrak, Odisha, near his hometown.
Bengaluru Murder Case: The striking similarities between the murders of Shraddha Walkar in Delhi and Mahalakshmi in Bengaluru have led police to suspect that the prime accused, Mukti Ranjan Roy, may have been influenced by the Walkar case after viewing social media videos reenacting the Delhi crime.
Shraddha Walkar, who was in a live-in relationship with the accused Aaftab Amin Poonawala, was allegedly strangled by him on May 18, 2022. According to a 6,629-page chargesheet filed by the Delhi Police in January of last year, Aaftab Poonawala is accused of dismembering her body, storing the remains in a fridge, and disposing of the pieces in remote areas throughout the city over several days to evade detection. The body parts were discovered later.
The body of 29-year-old Mahalakshmi was dismembered into 59 pieces, with her remains stored in a fridge for 18 days, closely resembling the case of Shraddha Walkar.
The accused, identified as Muktiranjan Pratap Ray (31), was found dead within the jurisdiction of the Dhusuri Police Station in Bhadrak district, Odisha.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Shekhar H. Tekkannavar stated in Bengaluru that the man was discovered hanging from a tree on Wednesday morning. A purported suicide note recovered from the scene reportedly includes a confession to the crime, according to Odisha police.
Bengaluru police reported that the suspect and the woman met while working at a garment shop, where they became friends and subsequently entered into a relationship.
Mahalakshmi was reportedly pressuring him to marry her, which resulted in ongoing arguments and ultimately an altercation. Allegedly frustrated by this, the accused, described as having a short temper, killed Mahalakshmi and subsequently dismembered her body, according to police findings from the preliminary investigation.
After the murder, Mukti Ranjan Pratap Roy spent the entire night with Mahalakshmi’s body, deliberating on how to dispose of it.
The report also indicated that he might have taken inspiration from the Shraddha Walkar case, which led him to dismember the body with a sharp cleaver knife, place it in the fridge, and flee the crime scene.
Investigations revealed that the murder took place between September 3 and 4.
More Details on What Led to the Murder
Mukti Ranjan Pratap Roy, a 31-year-old man from Odisha, was identified as the prime suspect in the murder of Mahalakshmi, whose body was found on September 21.
Mukti Ranjan and Mahalakshmi reportedly had a tumultuous relationship lasting nearly six months, marked by frequent arguments and physical altercations, some of which spilled into the street just outside her home in Vyalikaval, according to local police sources cited by News18.
Complaints about their disputes had been filed at the Malleshwaram police station, and officials noted that efforts were made to resolve the issues amicably.
He had talked about her aggressive behavior and the photos on her mobile phone with his younger brother, Smriti Ranjan Roy, who lived in Bengaluru. On the night of September 3, Mukti Ranjan allegedly went to Mahalakshmi’s home, where they had yet another argument triggered by her insistence that he marry her.
Mahalakshmi was previously married to Hemanth and had a young daughter from that marriage. The couple had separated in September 2023 after suspicions arose regarding her affair with a man named Ashraf, whom her husband cited as the reason for their breakup in his police statement.
Mukti Ranjan, aware of her prior marriage, also suspected her of having other affairs and refused to marry her. He had previously seen pictures of other men on Mahalakshmi’s phone, which angered him.
Police Say Mahalakshmi Was Known to Be ‘Hot-Tempered’
According to police, Mahalakshmi had a reputation for being “hot-tempered,” and there were complaints of physical altercations from both parties filed with local authorities.
Her estranged husband, Hemanth, also registered a similar case at the Nelamangala police station, reporting that she had bitten him during an argument and demanded money, as per investigators.
On that tragic night, following a heated argument, Mukti Ranjan Roy reportedly lost his temper. After assaulting Mahalakshmi, which resulted in her death, a furious Mukti Ranjan allegedly stayed with her body throughout the night, contemplating how to dispose of it. Police suspect that it was during this time that he watched videos on methods for body disposal.
Mukti Ranjan Purchased a Knife to Dismember Mahalakshmi’s Body
On September 4 at 11 a.m., CCTV footage confirmed that Mukti Ranjan Roy visited a utensil shop in Malleshwaram and bought a cleaver knife, according to a report by News18.
“We have footage of the accused entering the shop, and later evidence indicated that he discarded an item, which was later identified as the knife’s cover,” a police source stated.
After committing the crime, Mukti Ranjan turned off his phone and went into hiding. His younger brother, Smriti Ranjan, who lives in Hebbagodi near Electronic City, tried to contact him but found his phone switched off. A few days later, when Mukti Ranjan turned his phone back on, Smriti Ranjan asked why he had been unreachable.
“This is when Mukti Ranjan Roy confessed to his brother that he had committed murder. He urged him to immediately leave the room where he was staying, explaining that he was very upset with how Mahalakshmi treated him. He also complained about their constant arguments and her violent behavior, which had ultimately led to her murder,” the investigating officer stated.
Mukti Ranjan instructed his brother to flee the area, warning him that the police would also come after him. Smriti Ranjan later admitted to the police that Mukti Ranjan had even borrowed money from him after confessing to the murder, saying he was heading back to their hometown in Odisha to evade law enforcement.
The police traced Mukti Ranjan’s mobile phone to West Bengal, but it was switched off. Further technical analysis revealed that his number was active in Odisha, prompting the Bengaluru Police to dispatch three teams to locate and apprehend him.
“Technical data, scientific analysis, and CCTV footage were instrumental in tracking the prime suspect in this case. Based on the inquiry into Mukti Ranjan’s brother, who lives in Bengaluru, we learned that Mukti Ranjan had confessed to the murder to him. Additionally, Mukti Ranjan admitted to killing Mahalakshmi in a suicide note found near his body. We will continue our investigation as we gather more information from our teams and counterparts in Odisha,” stated Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Shekhar H. Tekkannavar.
Mukti Ranjan Committed ‘Suicide’
On Wednesday, September 25, Mukti Ranjan Roy was found hanging from a tree in Bhadrak, Odisha, near his hometown. Reports suggest that he had requested a two-wheeler from a friend in Balasore, assuring him he would return the vehicle later that day.
In his handwritten suicide note, Mukti Ranjan confessed to murdering Mahalakshmi. “I did it. I killed her. I was fed up with her. Her constant arguments and demands for money were very frustrating,” the note, written in Odia, reportedly stated, according to police sources in Odisha.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Central Bengaluru, Shekhar H. Tekkannavar, confirmed that the accused, Mukti Ranjan Roy, took his own life while being pursued by law enforcement.
Police suspect that Mukti Ranjan Roy may have used the two-wheeler to flee to Odisha. They are currently working to identify who provided him with the vehicle and the route he took.
Police teams from both Odisha and Karnataka are coordinating their efforts to gather the details surrounding this heinous murder.
