UP man kills debtor, fakes his own death to avoid rape conviction; arrested with 3 others

Saharanpur (UP), Mar 1 (PTI) Police have arrested four persons for allegedly conspiring to fake the death of one of them by killing his debtor and burning the body inside a car here, officials said on Sunday.

The accused have been identified as Arjun, Robin and Vijay Sagar, residents of Biharigarh in Saharanpur, and Shariq, a resident of Uttarakhand.

Arjun -- whose death was staged -- is an accused in a rape case. He devised the fake death ploy to escape sentencing in the ongoing trial, according to officials.

SSP Abhinandan Singh said the village head of Chorkhurd informed police on February 25 about a burnt car with a charred body inside, found parked on the roadside between Chorkhurd and Chandpur villages.

A police team rushed to the spot and identified the vehicle on the basis of its burnt number plate and registration details. The car was originally registered in name of a resident of New Tehri in Uttarakhand. The vehicle was last bought on February 16 by Arjun Kumar.

Soon after, Vijay Sagar, along with Robin Kumar, approached Gagalhedi police and claimed that the burnt car belonged to his brother Arjun, who had left home with Robin on February 24. He further claimed that Arjun had been missing since then.

A case was registered, and investigation was taken up by Sub-Inspector Rambeer Shakya, according to Singh.

The SSP said that on February 28, police arrested Arjun, Robin, Sharik and Vijay Sagar near the Badkala flyover.

During interrogation, Arjun confessed that in 2024, he worked as a driver at a beauty parlour in Dehradun where a woman employee lodged a rape case against him at the Dalanwala police station. He claimed he was jailed for about six months and feared life imprisonment as the trial is underway.

To evade conviction, Arjun allegedly hatched a plan to fake his own death.

Police said that during the COVID-19 lockdown, he had lent money on interest, and Rohit from Mohammadpur Kandhela village owed him about Rs 1.7 lakh.

Nursing a grudge after Rohit failed to repay the amount, Arjun allegedly conspired with Robin and Sharik, whom he had met in jail, to kill Rohit and pass off his body as his own.

According to police, Arjun bought the Alto car and on February 24, he and his accomplices brought Rohit to the spot after allegedly intoxicating him.

Arjun and Sharik allegedly strangled Rohit with a muffler and placed the body on the driver's seat to stage an accident. They loosened a wheel bolt and placed a rod on the roof to make it appear like a mishap before pouring petrol into the car and setting it ablaze, police said.

Arjun sustained minor burns in the process. The accused then fled, according to police.

Arjun later cut his hair in Dehradun to conceal his identity and allegedly used a SIM card procured in someone else's name. He also asked his brother to lodge a missing person complaint to make it appear that he had died in the incident.

Police said further investigation is underway. PTI COR CDN PRK