Bhubaneswar: In a landmark verdict, a local court on Wednesday sentenced three men to life imprisonment for the brutal murder of a money lender, whose body was chopped into 40 pieces in the Dhauli area in 2014. The 3rd Additional District and Sessions Judge, Himanshu Sekhar Mallick, pronounced the sentence, convicting Sanjay Khuntia, Sagar Prusty, and Bharat Sahoo of the murder of Krutibas Parija, 34, and destruction of evidence. The convicts, all in their 50s, were found guilty of a crime that shocked the city.
Grisly Discovery on Riverbank
The crime, committed on November 2, 2014, came to light two days later when severed body parts, including a head, were discovered on the banks of the Daya River. Police investigation, led by then Dhauli inspector-in-charge Debi Prasad Das, confirmed the victim's identity as Parija, a resident of Sarakantara on the city's outskirts. The discovery of the dismembered body parts sent shockwaves through the local community.
Motive: Revenge Over Loan
According to police, the motive was revenge. Parija had lent Rs 2 lakh to Khuntia, who failed to repay the amount on time. When Parija threatened him, Khuntia conspired with Prusty and Sahoo to eliminate him, a senior police officer said. The loan dispute escalated into a premeditated plan to kill Parija and dispose of his body in a manner that would evade detection.
Execution of the Crime
On the evening of November 2, Khuntia lured Parija to a vacant house in Dumuduma Housing Board Colony. There, Sahoo struck Parija with an iron rod while the others restrained him, and Khuntia slit his throat. The trio then dismembered the body and packed the remains into multiple bags, disposing of them at different locations to mislead investigators. They also abandoned Parija's motorcycle at Cuttack railway station and discarded his mobile phone near his fiancée's house in Hansapal, the officer added.
Investigation and Conviction
Police pieced together the crime through forensic evidence and witness accounts. The meticulous investigation, which involved tracing the victim's last movements and analyzing physical evidence, led to the arrest of the three accused. The court, after a thorough trial, convicted them of murder and destruction of evidence, sentencing them to life imprisonment.
The verdict brings closure to a case that had remained a grim reminder of the lengths to which human greed and anger can drive individuals. The convicts will serve their sentences in a correctional facility, as the legal system upholds justice for the heinous crime committed over a decade ago.
