In Motihari’s Belwatiya village under Sugali police station, a youth was brutally murdered by his cousin over suspicion of an illicit affair with the accused’s wife. Police revealed that Devanand lured his cousin, 20-year-old Tuntun Kumar, son of Ramesh Sah, to a sugarcane field on the pretext of a liquor party. Along with his friend Govinda, Devanand killed Tuntun by striking his head with an iron rod before hiding the body.
The body was recovered two days later, on the night of September 27, after which both accused were swiftly arrested.
Ranjeet Kumar, the deceased’s elder brother, said that Tuntun left home around 6 PM on September 25 and was last seen with Devanand. A friend of Tuntun had informed the family that he went out to get meat and alcohol.
After two days of unsuccessful searching, villagers discovered Tuntun’s body around 4 PM on Saturday when women cutting grass noticed a foul odor emanating from the sugarcane field. Upon investigation, they found Tuntun’s head completely crushed.
Sadar SDPO Dilip Singh confirmed that Devanand has been accused of the murder. Tuntun had been living outside but had returned to the village a few months earlier. Devanand, who had been working in Bengaluru, came back about 15 days ago.
The motive behind the murder emerged during interrogation: Devanand suspected Tuntun of having an affair with his wife after hearing rumors from villagers and seeing their conversations on the phone. Fearful that his second wife might abandon him like his first wife, who had eloped two and a half years ago, Devanand planned and executed the murder.
