• Accused blurt out crime at a drinking session
• Informants alert men on beat; case cracked

Mysore/Mysuru: The Police beat system forms an important aspect of policing and a Beat Constable is the face of the Police for the residents of a locality as they are the eyes and ears of the people. 

The role of a Beat Constable and their close contacts with public and informers has come into focus again as it helped Saraswathipuram Police solve a murder case that was initially registered as missing complaint. Four accused have been arrested now. 

While the deceased is 24-year-old Umesh, a resident of Janata Nagar, the accused are Manjesh, Sujith, Pruthvi and Yashwanth. Manjesh and Pruthvi are brothers. Though the murder had gone unnoticed, the accused, during a drinking session at a bar, had blurted out about the killing. This conversation was overheard by the informants of beat constables Arjun and L.M. Prakash who in turn informed inspector Thimmaraju.

On Aug. 25, the four accused, along with Umesh, were consuming liquor at a secluded place near Janata Nagar burial grounds. After a couple of pegs, an argument broke out between them where Umesh abused Manjesh using foul language. 

Enraged over this, Manjesh’s brother Pruthvi slapped Umesh. Losing balance, Umesh fell and moreover he was drunk. Moments later, Pruthvi bludgeoned Umesh with a stone and killed him. 

Soon after, Sujith, a construction worker, went to his shed where materials were stored. He picked up a crowbar and a spade and returned to the spot on his bike. The accused then dug a 7 ft. pit and buried Umesh in a sitting position.

As Umesh did not return home, his family members lodged a missing person complaint while the accused resumed their daily routine as nobody had suspected them.

But after a few days, one of the accused while drinking at a bar, spoke about the murder which was heard by the informants of 47th Beat Police Constable Arjun and Special Branch Constable Prakash.

Following the lead closely, Inspector Thimmaraju, along with Arjun and Prakash, began to collect information and picked up one of the accused who spilled the beans. Later, all the accused were rounded off.

The Police took them to the spot of crime this morning and conducted spot mahazar. The body of Umesh was exhumed in the presence of Tahsildar. Forensic Medicine and Toxicology experts from JSS Medical College exhumed the body and conducted a post-mortem on the spot. The entire process has been videographed.

Police said that a fortnight back a fight had broken out between Umesh and Pruthvi and the latter was waiting for an opportunity to take revenge and the chance came on the day of the crime. 

If not for the informants and the alert beat constables, the crime would not have come to light. City Police Commissioner Dr. Chandragupta announced a cash prize of Rs. 10,000 for cracking the case.