Three get lifer for killing four in Astarang

Surjit kumar Dhal, Puri, Feb 8: The three accused in the murder of a couple and their minor daughters in Astaranga were sentenced to life imprisonment by the Additional District Judge, Puri on Friday.

The accused, Himadri Sekhar Dash alias Rahim Khan, his wife Aisha Begum of West Medinapur in West Bengal and Fakir Mallik of Bolagarh in Khurda, were convicted under Sections 302/394/397/120-B of the IPC.

The court had convicted the three on Wednesday and reserved the verdict.

Crime Branch IG, Arun Bothra who was supervising this case said that it was a difficult case to crack but good teamwork and investigation resulted in the appropriate sentence for the accused.

During the course of investigation, the CID team seized a sweetmeat packet and tracked down the shop from where it was purchased. The shopkeeper gave a vital lead about the three accused, Bothra said.

“One of the accused had sustained minor injuries while murdering Dinabandhu’s family and used a hand towel to wipe his blood. The towel proved to be a crucial circumstantial evidence for DNA matching,” Bothra said.

The trio hatched a conspiracy to eliminate Dinabandhu Mallik, his wife Nirmala and their two children for money.

The brutal crime was committed during the night in September 22, 2015.

Crime Branch arrested Himadri and Aisha from Hailakhandi in Assam in October, 2015 and during interrogation the couple confessed to the crime.