A tragic incident unfolded in Solapur district late Thursday night, where a zilla parishad school principal allegedly murdered his wife and two young sons by lacing their ice cream with poison before taking his own life by hanging at their native home. The police suspect that massive financial losses, amounting to nearly Rs 1.8 crore in the stock market, drove the man to commit this extreme act, based on a note recovered from the scene.
Victims Identified
The deceased have been identified as Yogesh Patil, a 41-year-old principal posted at Chaugaon Budruk in Nandurbar district; his wife, Madhuri (37); and their sons, Atharva (11) and Shivansh (9). The incident occurred at their home village, Hattij, in Barshi taluka of Solapur. A case has been registered at the Vairag police station.
Financial Distress Revealed
The police stated that Patil had reportedly incurred significant losses in stock investments over the past few months. A 22-page handwritten note recovered from the house does not blame anyone but details his distress. Inspector Kundan Gawade of the Vairag police station said the note pointed to financial collapse as the trigger. “According to the 22-page letter written by Yogesh Patil, he committed suicide along with his wife and two children after he could not bear the financial loss of crores of rupees invested in the stock market. He has not blamed anyone in this note. We are in the process of registering a murder case against Yogesh Patil for killing his wife and two children,” he explained.
Discovery of Bodies
The incident came to light on Friday morning when a milkman’s repeated knocks went unanswered. Villagers then forced open the door to find Patil hanging from a ceiling fan, while his wife and children lay lifeless nearby. The police believe the woman and the children were given poisoned ice cream before the suicide. Following postmortem and panchanama, the four were cremated together on Friday evening.
Investigation and Warnings
Preliminary inquiries revealed that Patil had been investing not just his salary but also money borrowed from relatives, promising high returns. “People should be wary of online games and predatory companies that lure them with huge amounts of money in the share market,” Gawade added, highlighting the growing risk of unchecked speculative investments. Patil had returned to Hattij with his family for a holiday from Nandurbar, where he was serving as a school principal. The police are continuing to probe the case.
