Bylakuppe: The Bylakuppe Police have arrested three individuals in connection with the tragic death of a young man caused by an accidental gun firing. Santhosh (34) met his untimely death on the banks of the River Cauvery at Giriguru near Periyapatna on the evening of Mar. 19.

Following suspicions of foul play from the deceased’s family, a case was registered. Initial investigations pointed towards Santhosh’s death being the result of an accidental bullet discharged from the firearm. It was revealed that Santhosh had been in the process of setting up a quad-bike adventure centre at Giriguru and had already identified a location for the venture. On the fateful afternoon of Mar. 19, Santhosh and seven of his friends gathered at the designated location along the banks of the River Cauvery to celebrate. Following the conclusion of the party, only four of his friends returned, raising questions about the events leading up to Santhosh’s tragic demise.

Santhosh, accompanied by his friends Sharath, Nuthan, and Ravikumar, remained at the location. At approximately 5.30 pm, they strolled along the riverbanks, with Santhosh carrying his friend’s .22 rifle.

Suddenly, a gunshot echoed in the air, prompting the group to rush to Santhosh’s side. To their horror, they discovered him bleeding profusely from his eyes, with a bullet having penetrated his head through his eyes. Santhosh lay motionless, leaving his friends in shock and disbelief at the tragic turn of events.

In their statement to the Police, the friends recounted that Santhosh’s death occurred due to an accidental discharge from the .22 rifle. However, Santhosh’s brother Jayaprakash suspected foul play and complained to the Police. Consequently, a case, specifically under the charge of ‘culpable homicide not amounting to murder’ (IPC Section 304), was registered.

Foul play suspected

Jayaprakash’s complaint highlighted discrepancies in the statements provided by the friends regarding the incident. He emphasised that the lack of coherence between their statements raised doubts about the veracity of their claims and suggested a potential lack of correlation between their testimonies.

Following the seizure of the gun, the Police conducted an on-site investigation, during which it was revealed that the group of friends had consumed alcohol after parking their car at Bychanahalli. Additionally, it came to light that the friends had intended to use the gun to shoot fish in the river, leading to Santhosh’s tragic demise from a bullet discharged during this activity.

The Police have now arrested Nuthan, a resident of Gopal Circle in Kushalnagar, along with Sharath from Basaveshwara Layout and Ravikumar from Koppa village. Investigations have revealed that the .22 rifle belonged to Anudeep from Kushalnagar, who had entrusted it to Nuthan for repair work.

A forensic team from Mysuru is assisting the Police in unravelling the truth. The team visited the spot to collect evidence and documents. Mysuru SP Seema Latkar, Dy.SP R.V. Gangadharappa visited the spot. The investigation team is led by Hunsur Dy.SP Gopalakrishna, Periyapatna Inspector Veena and Bylakuppe Sub-Inspector Jitendra Kumar.