Bengaluru techie death | Teen neighbour killed her for refusing sexual advances: Police

In a new development in the case of death of a 34-year-old woman software engineer, Bengaluru police on Sunday (January 11) said they have arrested an 18-year-old man on murder charges. The victim was initially suspected to have died in a fire accident, at her apartment in the eastern part of the city.

It was initially suspected that she died due to suffocation from smoke, after a fire broke at her two bedroom flat, allegedly due to a short circuit, late on January 3 night.

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Police investigated the case based on a complaint by a victim's friend, who expressed suspicion about the death.

The man, a native of Kodagu district, had allegedly murdered her for refusing sexual advances. The victim, who hailed from Dakshina Kannada, worked for a prominent tech company here.

The incident had happened at Subramanya Layout in the Ramamurthy Nagar police station limits. Her flatmate had gone to her hometown when the incident happened.

The case

According to police, the suspect, who lived with his mother next door, allegedly entered the victim's flat through a siding window at around 9 pm on January 3 and asked her to cooperate sexually, to which she resisted.

He is then said to have held her mouth and nose tightly, rendering her unconscious. She suffered a minor injury and was bleeding, they said, adding that the accused then threw her clothes and other evidence on the bed in the room and set it on fire, to destroy the evidence. He then fled, after taking the victim's mobile phone.

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Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) teams and experts had visited the spot and based on certain technical evidence, the suspect has been arrested and further investigation is on, officials said, adding that he has been remanded in custody for three days.

(With agency inputs)