An 83-year-old man was murdered in Lalitpur to steal a three-tola gold ring.
Police investigations have revealed that the motive behind the murder of elderly man Garjaman Thapa, originally from Ilam, was the robbery of his gold ring. Thapa, who lived in Prasiddha Tole, Lalitpur Metropolitan City–17, went missing around 2 pm on Poush 26. After he disappeared, his relatives searched the neighbourhood throughout the afternoon but were unable to locate him.
When Thapa remained missing, his family filed a complaint at the Satdobato Police Circle at around 7 pm. Two days after the complaint was lodged, police were able to trace his whereabouts.
At the time he went missing, Thapa, who was about four feet tall with a fair complexion, was wearing a black jacket with “The North Face” written on it, black jeans, black shoes, and a cream-colored cap.
For two days, no information emerged about the elderly man, who lived about 800 meters northeast of the Satdobato Police Circle. However, on the third day, his body was found dumped after being murdered, according to SSP Hobindra Bogati of the Lalitpur District Police Range.
A large, suspicious white sack was spotted inside a well near Thapa’s residence. On Monday, police retrieved the sack from the well and confirmed that it contained the body of Garjaman Thapa, who had gone missing on Poush 26, SSP Bogati said.
After finding the body packed in a sack and dumped in a well, preliminary investigations confirmed that Thapa had been murdered. Police, concluding it was a homicide, have arrested one person on murder charges.
The main suspect arrested is 23-year-old Saddham Mansur, a resident of East Champaran (Motihari), Bihar, India. A joint team from the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office, Lalitpur, and the Lalitpur District Police Range arrested him.
Police also arrested Yusuf Ansari and Mohammad Noman in connection with the case.
The elderly man lived near the factory where Mansur worked. As Thapa regularly visited the factory, the two were acquainted. Police said Thapa had gone to the factory on Poush 26 as usual, and Mansur allegedly killed him on that occasion.
After the murder, the victim’s hands and legs were tied, his body was packed in a sack, and dumped into a well. Police have also recovered the stolen gold ring.
Murder for the ring
According to family members, Thapa used to wear a three-tola gold ring. Police investigations into Mansur also confirmed that the murder was committed to steal the ring.
“It appears the murder was carried out to rob the ring,” a police investigation officer said. Mansur allegedly took the ring after killing the elderly man.
Police said the murder took place at around 5 pm on Poush 26. Mansur has confessed to slitting Thapa’s throat with a knife. The knife used in the crime has also been recovered from the scene.
Mansur, who works at a plywood factory, allegedly killed the elderly man with a knife and dumped the body into the well around midnight. “The murder occurred around 5 pm, and the body was thrown into the well at around 11:55 pm,” an investigating officer said.
The well where the body was dumped is located about 200 meters from the factory. Police said Mansur was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the murder. Further investigation is underway against him on charges of murder.
