A man has been arrested by the Delhi Police on charges of killing his friend and disposing of the body in a city drain in the Dwarka neighborhood. The deceased is identified as 32-year-old Yogesh Kumar who was shot dead by a 27-year-old MBA student Shashank Singh.
Yogesh Kumar resided in the Madangir neighborhood of south Delhi with his wife, 2-year-old daughter, and parents. He was an unemployed graphic designer looking for work, according to his spouse. He reportedly rejected the culprit’s attempts for sexual favours.
The victim had gone missing on 9 July in south Delhi and his body was discovered on 2 August. The case’s inquiry commenced when his father reported him missing to the Ambedkar Nagar police station on 10 July. The complaint stated that his son left for a job interview but never returned. In addition, he revealed that he received a call demanding Rs 20 lakh in ransom in exchange for his release.
The police took notice of the complaint and opened a probe to find him. A kidnapping for ransom case was filed under section 364A of the Indian Penal Code. The ransom was eventually lowered to Rs 15 lakh and the accused gave the complainant directions to Palika Bazar in Connaught Place and gate number 2 of the Great India Place (GIP) Mall in Noida.
Both attempts to trade the money for the victim, however, were unsuccessful because the caller did not appear at either location. Deputy Commissioner of Police South, Chandan Chowdhary informed that further investigations disclosed the ransom calls originated in Supaul, Bihar and the caller’s location was Noida. This act was done to mislead the investigation. CCTV footage from the Plaza Mall in Dwarka Sector-16 offered a crucial lead throughout the probe.
It confirmed that Yogesh Kumar left a Swift car after buying a pizza with another person. The cops tracked down the offender after spotting a distinctive mark and word on the gasoline tank lid of the vehicle. After examining the technical evidence, police learned that he had last been seen with his friend Shashank Singh, and as a result, the latter was arrested.
Shashank Singh was located in east Delhi’s New Ashok Nagar. Police unveiled, “In the early hours of Wednesday, we picked up the suspect from his home. He first tried to mislead us, but later confessed to the crime.”
The murder confession
Shashank Singh admitted under questioning that he and the deceased were initially acquainted at a party in Delhi and had since started meeting for work-related reasons. He was helping the latter who was out of job to find employment. They met on 9 July in Moolchand and the perpetrator then took him to a remote area in Dwarka Sector 14. He had called Yogesh Kumar to schedule an alleged job interview and told him to bring his resume with him.
The DCP mentioned, “Both were searching for jobs and became friends after meeting at a party. The two would also attend LGBTQ parties, and the accused asked the victim to give him his resume to help him find a job.”
Afterward, an argument over a request for sexual favors resulted in him fatally shooting the other individual after which he put the dead body in a suitcase and discarded it in a sewer not far from Dwarka Sector-14B. He cleaned the automobile and dumped blood-stained car sheets, the murder weapon, and other items into the Yamuna River in an effort to hide his traces.
He bought a bogus SIM card and dialed the relatives of the dead man for ransom in an effort to sabotage the inquiry. It was also found that he had purchased the pistol from an acquaintance in Noida so that he could impress people at social functions. Yogesh Kumar’s family eventually contacted the police after they searched for him and received ransom calls.
The distraught mother even remembered their final conversation before he went out to meet his supposed friend. She cried, “He left with his resume at 10.30 am. I called him around 12.40 pm to ask if he had lunch. His phone was switched off.” His brother accused, “The police told us that he was an adult and would eventually return home. If they had searched for him properly, he could have been saved.”
However, according to the police, Yogesh Kumar was murdered the day he left his home. They maintained that he and his friend had met in Moolchand, travelled to Dwarka, purchased pizza and beer, and then arrived at a quiet area in Sector 14 of the vicinity. The senior official proclaimed, “When he realized that the disappearance has become a police case, the accused made ransom calls to the victim’s family.”
Another police official, not wishing to be named, has reportedly said, “The accused held a grudge against the victim over seeking sexual favours. The accused, who was carrying a gun with him, shot the victim dead. There was the angle of sexual demands in the murder. But who was pressuring who is yet to be ascertained.”
The first call was made on the evening of July 14, the official elaborated, “The caller demanded Rs 20 lakh, but the victim’s father negotiated for Rs 15 lakh. In the subsequent calls, the caller would disconnect before the family could seek evidence that the victim was alive.”
Yogesh Kumar’s two ATM cards were used to withdraw Rs 27,000 on 12 July in Noida, according to her. He was fully disguised, wearing both a mask and a helmet.
