Shillong, June 9 (UNI) Sonam Raghuvanshi, wife of murdered Raja Raghuvanshi, has surrendered to Uttar Pradesh police with preliminary investigation suggesting she had allegedly hired miscreants to kill her husband in Meghalaya during the couple’s honeymoon, a senior cop said on Monday.
The Meghalaya police has already nabbed three of those allegedly hired by Sonam to kill her persons in connection with the case.
Sonam had given herself up before police at Nandganj Police Station of Ghazipur district in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday night, the Meghalaya Police official told UNI.
The three other murder suspects – two from Indore in Madhya Pradesh and one from Lalitpur district in Uttar Pradesh – were arrested by the Special Investigation Team of Meghalaya Police based on circumstantial evidence related to the cold-blood murder of Raja.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the three accused were allegedly hired by Sonam to murder Raja, the police official said, adding that the hunt is on to nab one more accused.
“All the four acused would be produced before the courts for a transit remand to the state for further investigation into the cold-blooded murder,” a police official said.
All the accused are being grilled for further details on the case.
A case of murder is being registered and a Special Investigation Team is conducting the investigation.
The couple from Madhya Pradesh’s Indore had arranged marriage on May 11 and arrived in Meghalaya’s capital Shillong on May 21 on a honeymoon.
On May 22, the newlywed couple rode all the way on their rented two wheeler to Sohra, the wettest place on earth, in Meghalaya’s East Khasi Hills district as part of their honeymoon.
The couple had checked in at Shipara Homestay at Nongriat village – home to the famed living double decker root bridge on May 22. Raja and Sonam checked out of their homestay early in the morning.
Albert Pde, a tour guide, said that he had seen the couple midway through the trek, returning from Nongriat, were accompanied by three other male tourists.
“Raja was walking with the three men, while Sonam was walking slowly behind them,” Pde had said.
The missing of the couple came to light when a two-wheeler which they had hired was found abandoned on May 24 at Sohrarim village between Shillong and Sohra road.
On June 2, Meghalaya Police retrieved the decomposed body of Raja, after eight days of he and his wife Sonam were reported missing, from a deep gorge below the Wei Sawdong parking lot at Riat Arliang in Sohra.
On June 4, Meghalaya Police recovered raincoat stained with what looked like blood from a gorge at AD view point at Mawkma village.
Police officers probing the case said that Raja was killed in a cold-blooded manner. The cops also recovered a machete believed to be the murder weapon from the crime scene.
Investigators said all material evidence recovered from the crime scene would be send to Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Hyderabad for further analysis.
The disappearance of the Indore honeymooner came to light after a two-wheeler, which they had hired from Meghalaya’s capital Shillong for four days, was found abandoned with key on it by villagers on May 24 at Sohrarim village between Shillong and Sohra road.
