SHILLONG, June 16: Meghalaya DGP Idashisha Nongrang on Monday said the investigators probing the murder of Indore businessman Raja Raghuvanshi in Sohra were not treating the love triangle as the only motive, and they are looking into various other angles.
Raja was hacked to death on May 23 while honeymooning in the Northeastern state. His wife Sonam, her boyfriend Raj and three hitmen were arrested in connection with the murder on June 9.
“We are investigating whether there is anything more to this case. It is unusual that within a few days of marriage, she (Sonam) would develop so much animosity against her husband,” Nongrang told PTI.
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“We are exploring all possible angles for this murder to have taken place. We have enough evidence, and loose ends are being tied up. We have a solid case,” she added.
Sonam (25) and Raja (29) got married in Indore on May 11 and reached Meghalaya via Guwahati in Assam on May 21 for their honeymoon. Both of them went “missing” on May 23 in Sohra in East Khasi Hills district, hours after checking out of a homestay at Nongriat village.
Raja’s decomposed body was found in a gorge near Weisawdong Falls on June 2. A search continued for Sonam, who emerged in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur, around 1,200 km away, in the early hours of June 9 and surrendered as police arrested his boyfriend and the three hitmen.
Sonam told the investigators that the Raja’s jewellery that went missing was kept in a “particular place”, the DGP said.
“We will be looking into that,” she said.
All those arrested will be taken to Sohra around 12 pm on Tuesday for the reconstruction of the crime scene, police said
The hitmen, who were Raj’s friends, had attacked Raja on the head with a machete in front of Sonam at the parking lot of the Weisawdong Falls. They then pushed the body into the gorge, according to the police.
Sonam fled the state following the murder, taking taxis, buses, and a train to reach Indore via Assam, West Bengal, Bihar and UP.
She, however, left behind her ‘mangalsutra’ and a ring in her trolley bag at a homestay in Sohra, leading the police to suspect her, Nongrang had earlier told PTI.
Meanwhile, a video posted by a tourist on Instagram went viral after Sonam and Raja were spotted in it. In the video, Sonam and Raja were seen ascending from Nongriat just hours before he was brutally murdered.
Sonam, wearing black trousers with a white full-sleeved shirt similar to the one recovered from the crime scene, was seen walking a few steps ahead of Raja.
Police confirmed the authenticity of the video to PTI.
East Khasi Hills district SP Vivek Syiem told the news agency that Sonam has confessed to being a part of the conspiracy to kill her husband.
“At first it appeared that Sonam and her boyfriend hired hitmen, but later we found out the three were close friends of Raj and they killed Raja as a favour to their friend,” he said.
The SIT probing the case has sought the assistance from the police of Assam and some other states, where the accused persons have been before and after committing the crime, an official said.
The machete used in the murder was bought from Guwahati, where the hitmen stayed for a night, he said.
The three hitmen and the couple arrived in Shillong around the same time before they travelled to Sohra, about 65 km away, Deputy Inspector General DNR Marak said. (PTI)
