An elderly couple was found murdered in their south Delhi home on Monday and the prime suspect, their domestic help, was missing, police said.
NEW DELHI: An elderly couple was found murdered on Monday and their house ransacked in a posh south Delhi locality with police suspecting their absconding domestic help, who was employed a week ago, to be behind the crime.
Ashok Goel (62), a former purchase manager of Taj Mahal Hotel here, and his wife Lata (55) were found with their throats slit this morning at their Neeti Bagh residence by police after being informed by a neighbour.
The domestic help Mukesh Yadav, who was introduced to the Goels by their former help Radha, was missing from the scene and police is sending a team to Bihar's Bhagalpur, from where he belongs.
"A sharp-edged weapon was used to kill the couple. The house has been ransacked and we suspect the motive is robbery. We are sending a team to Bhagalpur to find Yadav," Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) H G S Dhaliwal said.
Lata, a heart patient, was not keeping well from some time, and had recently undergone an eye surgery. The Goels had another help Sumitra, who worked during day time.
The police verification of Yadav, who was employed eight days ago, was not done so far and the family had filed the application for the same last evening, he added.
The incident came to light after Mukesh Bharadwaj, a neighbour, went to the house following a call from the couple's younger daughter Priya, who requested him to check whether her parents were alright as her repeated attempts to reach them over phone proved futile.
Bharadwaj informed police after he saw blood coming out of the front door, which was closed from inside. Policemen entered the house from the terrace and found the bodies lying in a pool of blood.
A senior police official said they were yet to ascertain the stolen property from the house.
Police will question Radha, the former servant who introduced Yadav to the couple, and Sumitra besides one Sankar Kamat, the driver of Goel's brother-in-law Rajendra Gupta, who had gone to the residence on Sunday evening.
Rajendra had asked Kamat to arrange a driver for the Goels and he had gone there in this regard, Kamat claimed.
This is the fifth incident of crime allegedly involving domestic servants reported from south Delhi this month.
While an elderly couple and their grandson were drugged in New Friends Colony on May seven, an interior designer and his minor son were drugged in south-west Delhi in separated incidents in the second week of May before decamping with valuables.
A 70-year-old woman was murdered allegedly by her servant in south Delhi on May six while on May 11, two young working women were drugged allegedly by their domestic help who decamped with valuables.
With a spurt in cases of crime involving servants, Delhi Police have launched a one-month special drive from May 12 to check the antecedents of domestic helps.
According to Delhi Police statistics, they had found servants employed in 20,744 houses during the drive till May 18.
While in 8,485 houses, the servants were found verified while 58 per cent remained unverified.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}