Nailed by a call

The body of Nagaraju, seen lying on M-sand in front of his car, on service road of Outer Ring Road near Unnathi Nagar.

• Thief’s call to his aunt becomes his undoing
• Youth arrested for robbing accident victim on Ring Road
• Mystery shrouds company car driver’s death in accident

Mysuru, June 6 – A Police investigation into the mysterious death of a 48-year-old man has uncovered a shocking case of theft, with a youth allegedly stealing the victim’s belongings after finding him critically injured near his crashed car.

N.R. Police have arrested 24-year-old Mujahid Khan, a resident of Kalyangiri, in connection with the theft. He has been remanded to judicial custody. The breakthrough came after investigators used Call Detail Records (CDR) technology to trace the missing mobile phone of the deceased, leading them to the accused.

Accident and suspicion

The deceased, H. Nagaraju, a resident of Bhyraveshwar Nagar in Hebbal, was employed as a driver with ‘Star Mark Software Company’.

In the early hours of June 2, the car he was driving crashed into a pile of M-sand dumped on a service road near the Outer Ring Road at Unnati Nagar.

A driver from another company who happened to pass by the spot informed Nagaraju’s employer about the accident, following which the company alerted his family.

When Nagaraju’s brother Venkatesh reached the spot, he noticed that the body was lying about five feet away from the vehicle, raising suspicions about the circumstances surrounding the death. As the exact cause of death was unclear, the Police launched a detailed investigation.

Missing phone leads Police to accused

Investigators first focused on tracing Nagaraju’s mobile phone, which was missing from the accident scene.

Using CDR analysis, the Police examined calls and messages linked to the deceased’s phone number. Records showed that messages had been received on Nagaraju’s number at around 3.15 am, 7 am and 8.18 am on the day of the incident, while the International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number remained unchanged.

However, investigators found that a 40-second call had been made at around 5.30 pm using the same SIM card from a different mobile phone with a different IMEI number. The recipient of the call was identified as Hasina Bhanu, a resident of S.S. Nagar in Bannimantap. When questioned, she told the Police that she had returned a call received from her nephew, Mujahid Khan.

Accused confesses

Based on this lead, the Police took Khan into custody from his residence. During questioning, Khan admitted to calling his aunt using Nagaraju’s SIM card. When the Police examined his mobile phone, they found that its IMEI number matched the device used to make the call.

Khan later confessed to stealing Nagaraju’s belongings after coming across the accident scene.

According to the Police, Khan told investigators that he was returning home from his aunt’s house at around 4.30 am on June 2 when he noticed a car with its headlights still on after it had crashed into the M-sand pile.

The act of crime

Curious, he approached the vehicle and saw a man seated in the driver’s seat, still strapped in with a seat belt. The victim was bleeding from the nose and had foam-like fluid around his mouth.

Khan claimed he tried to wake the man, but received no response. He was unable to open the driver’s side door, but managed to open the front passenger-side door. He then dragged Nagaraju out of the vehicle and placed him on the sand beside the road.

Police said Khan confessed to stealing Nagaraju’s waist belt, mobile phone and two data cables before leaving the spot. While he kept the mobile phone, he allegedly hid the belt and cables in an abandoned house near a railway track.

Investigators said Khan removed Nagaraju’s SIM card from the stolen phone and inserted it into his own handset. He later used the SIM card to call his aunt. This move ultimately led the Police to him.

While the Police have solved the theft angle, the mystery surrounding Nagaraju’s death remains. Speaking to Star of Mysore, N.R. Police said they are awaiting the post-mortem findings to determine cause of death.