Maharashtra: Woman allegedly orchestrates ex-press photographer's murder

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A police probe into the murder of a former press photographer in Nagpur, Maharashtra, has revealed a startling revelation: a lady allegedly in a connection with the victim plotted his death by hiring a shooter, authorities said on Thursday.

Vinay alias Bablu Poonekar, 54, was shot and killed at his Raj Nagar home on February 23, according to officials. Sakshi Grover (36) has been caught in connection with the homicide, but the gunman, Hemant Shukla, remains at large.

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A senior official from Sadar Police Station stated that during interrogation Grover had originally denied any involvement and that retrieval of deleted WhatsApp messages revealed that she was involved.

"During her questioning, Grover denied having any link with the murder. However, the police later retrieved her deleted WhatsApp chats with Shukla, which revealed that the woman had instigated him to kill Poonekar," an official of Sadar police station said, per the PTI report.

The official further said, "Based on Grover's instructions, Shukla fired two bullets at Poonekar. During the probe, it was found that the bullets were fired from two separate weapons."

Grover, a Madhya Pradesh native, lost her husband a few years after their marriage. She was formerly associated with Poonekar and is now in a relationship with Shukla. Shukla, on the other hand, felt that she was still involved with Poonekar, which prompted his protest.

Investigators discovered a message sent by Grover on February 22 that reportedly motivated Shukla to delete Poonekar while reviewing their WhatsApp interactions, the official said. Her message in Hindi said, "Agar main uska ghar dikha doon, to kya tum usko maar doge? (Will you kill him if I show you his house?)"

"This showed that Grover was not only aware of the murder, but actively involved in the conspiracy," the official stated and added that they were actively strengthening their efforts to apprehend Shukla.

Meanwhile, in another unrelated case, a man from Thane and his family were booked for dowry death based on a complaint filed by his wife's mother. The man's wife Namrata, was set ablaze by his parents after constant torture and harassment in October last year. The man and his kin, who had reportedly, already taken a dowry of Rs 50 lakhs had been demanding additional Rs 50 lakhs to buy a flat.

With PTI inputs