Raghuvanshi murder: Meghalaya court remands 3 in police custody
Shillong: A Meghalaya court on Thursday remanded three co-accused in six days' police custody in connection with the murder of Indore-based transport businessman Raja Raghuvanshi.
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The special investigation team (SIT) of Meghalaya Police produced accused Silome James, Balbir Ahirbar alias Ballu and Lokendra Singh Tomar, who had been brought from Indore to Shillong, before the court of judicial magistrate (first class) DKK Mihsill on Thursday. The trio were charged with concealment and destruction of evidence crucial to the case.
Property dealer Silome James, who had rented a flat to one of the main accused, Vishal Singh Chauhan, in Indore, was arrested for the destruction and concealment of evidence.
This evidence included a pistol, ammunition and cash from a bag belonging to Sonam Raghuvanshi, the prime accused in the murder of her husband Raja in Sohra on May 23.
East Khasi Hills SP Vivek Syiem said on Wednesday, acting on leads provided by James, the SIT recovered a country-made pistol with two magazines and two .32 ammunition from a stream in Indore. They had also seized Rs 50,000 in cash from James's car. James had admitted that the cash was taken from a laptop bag belonging to Raj Kushwaha, Sonam's 'lover', police said.
Lokendra Singh Tomar, the owner of a flat in Indore, who had gone into hiding, was traced and arrested in Gwalior.
Sonam had reportedly stayed in that flat from May 26 to June 8 after fleeing Meghalaya following her husband's murder. She later surfaced in Uttar Pradesh and surrendered before the police, following which she was brought to Shillong, where she is currently in judicial custody.
Balbir Ahirbar, alias 'Ballu', was a security guard at the flat in Indore where Sonam was hiding.
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The newlywed couple was on a honeymoon trip to Sohra, where Raja was killed following a 'signal' from Sonam.
Raj, believed to be the 'mastermind' behind the murder, and his accomplices Akash Rajput, Vishal Singh Chauhan and Anand Kurmi — who are directly linked with the crime — were arrested from Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and are presently in judicial custody.
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