First suspect in custody is Hindu Yuva Sena man
Police said Kumar admitted to having had a role in killing conspiracy
The Karnataka police’s special investigation team (SIT), which is probing the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, on Friday took into custody reportedly the founder of rightwing outfit Hindu Yuva Sena, KT Naveen Kumar, in what the police believe could be “a significant breakthrough” in the case.
Deputy commissioner of police (Bengaluru West) MN Anucheth, the investigating officer in the case, said Naveen Kumar alias Hotte Manja, who was already in judicial remand in connection with another case, was taken into custody on Friday for eight days. Police have named Kumar as the first accused in the case.
Lankesh, 55, known as an antiestablishment voice with strident anti-right wing views, was gunned down outside her house on September 5 by an assailant who was wearing a helmet. Four bullets were fired at her, three of which hit her, when she was returning home from work. The entire incident was captured on a CCTV camera outside her house.
In the aftermath of the murder, the SIT had pinned its hopes on finding leads through CCTV footage and mobile phone call data. However, in the six months since then, few leads turned up through these means, an officer who is part of the SIT said.
Faced with this, the SIT launched a massive crackdown on illegal arms suppliers across the state. While that seemed to have been heading towards a dead end, too, it brought Kumar to SIT’s notice.
“The suspect was under observation, but he does not appear to have played a major part in the crime. However, it is still a major breakthrough for us,” the officer said. Kumar, 37, a resident of Birur in Chikmagalur district, was arrested on February 18 by the central crime branch on charges of illegally possessing bullets. “A total of 15 rounds of the cartridges of the .32 calibre were recovered,” the officer said.
While in custody, Kumar admitted to having had a role in the conspiracy to murder Lankesh, the officer added. “Based on certain clues revealed by him, the SIT took him into police custody for eight days for further questioning,”
the officer said.
Police said his looks matched with one of the sketches of the suspect and the photograph developed from a CCTV footage obtained from Lankesh’s house.
“The footage, cellphone data and matching the cartridges could at best be corroborative evidence. They have so far revealed little,” the officer said.
Additionally, while the SIT had released the sketches of three suspects earlier, it now believes four people were involved.