Actor Darshan Tugudeep and his wife Vijayalakshmi.
Credit: DH File Photo
Bengaluru: Darshan Thoogudeepa’s wife, Vijayalakshmi, appeared before police on Wednesday to record her statement on the murder of Chitradurga resident Renukaswamy, 34, whose body was found beside a stormwater drain in west Bengaluru’s Sumanahalli on June 9.
The police have arrested 17 people in connection with the case, including Kannada film star Darshan Thoogudeepa and his close friend Pavithra Gowda.
Vijayalakshmi went to Annapoorneshwari Nagar police station, where a Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by Bengaluru police is questioning her husband and other accused in the case.
She visited the police station at around 1.30 pm and came out after over four hours.
A senior police officer told DH that they needed her statements about some aspects of the case.
The development came days after a police team recovered loafers from her house that were allegedly worn by Darshan on the day of Renukaswamy’s murder.
According to a remand application seen by DH, a police team went to Vijayalakshmi’s house in the early hours of June 16 and collected Darshan’s loafers from his wife.
The police said that when they contacted Vijayalakshmi to recover the loafers, she said that there were a couple of shoes at her house and reportedly told them that as it was odd hour (around 1 am) and as her minor son was at home, she would hand over the shoes to the security counter.
Later, Vijayalakshmi visited the security room and handed over a pair of blue loafers to the investigators in the presence of FSL team officers. The investigators are said to have recorded Vijayalakshmi’s statement regarding this event.
Darshan confesses to having given money
According to the remand copy submitted to the court by the investigators on June 16, Darshan allegedly confessed to the police that he gave Rs 30 lakh to Pradosh, one of the accused, to give it to the people who would shoulder the murder charges for Darshan and make sure that his name wouldn’t come up. The investigators have seized the full amount.
Darshan and the other accused were taken to Victoria Hospital.
Taken for DNA tests
Meanwhile, SIT took 15 accused, who are currently in police custody, to the Victoria Hospital to take samples for DNA testing. Well-placed sources confirmed to DH that the team took 15 members to the hospital and collected hair follicles and blood samples. The collected samples were handed over to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team.
Earlier, during the mahazar of multiple places, the police gathered samples that could be used for DNA examination at the crime scene.
Security guard’s statement
According to the remand application, the investigators have recorded one Narendra Singh’s statement, who worked as a security guard at the Pattanagere shed, where the accused allegedly beat Renukaswamy to death.
As Singh didn’t know Kannada and spoke only Hindi, the investigators sought the help of one N Devaraju, the principal of a school in Chamarajpet, for translation.