Police on Sunday intensified their search for a man accused in a triple-murder case here on suspicions that he might have also killed his wife, whose body was found last week, officials said.
The body of Chandra Devi, wife of accused Santosh Ram, was found at an old house on Friday night, SP (Pithoragarh) Lokeshwar Singh said.
According to police, Ram allegedly had murdered his aunt Hemanti Devi (68), her daughter and daughter-in-law following an argument the same day.
The search for the accused has been intensified using drones and a dog squad, police said.
The house where Chandra's body was found was bought by Ram recently. It was locked from outside and her body was recovered by her children from inside after they broke opened the door, an official said.
A 60-member team consisting of police, PAC (Provincial Armed Constabulary) and SDRF (State Disaster Response Force) personnel are searching for Ram in the Ramganga valley and Gangolihat with the help of drones and a dog squad, the SP said.
It is also suspected that the absconding accused died by suicide after committing the quadruple murders.
"The dogs are going up towards the high cliffs under which the river Ramganga flows. It gives rise to the possibility that the accused might have jumped into the river from the cliff. We are also searching for the accused along the river bank," Singh said.
(Published 14 May 2023, 10:17 IST)
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