Bengaluru, 23 Dec

A 64-year-old man was arrested here for allegedly killing his wife following domestic disputes and attempting to pass off the crime as a road accident, police said on Tuesday.

The accused, Ananth, a resident of Chikkabommasandra, was taken into custody on Monday. His wife, Gayathri, 55, was a physical education teacher at a government school. The couple has a daughter studying in Class 12, police said.

According to the investigation, the incident occurred on Saturday evening when Ananth took Gayathri to Mittiganahalli on a scooter on the pretext of searching for property to purchase. He allegedly led her to an under-construction building, where he repeatedly struck her head with a stone.

Police said Ananth later called an ambulance, claiming she had met with a road accident. Gayathri was taken to a private hospital, where doctors declared her brought dead on arrival.

Suspicion arose when the post-mortem report revealed multiple head injuries caused by a blunt object. During questioning, Ananth allegedly confessed to the murder.

Investigators said the couple frequently argued over financial issues, with disputes escalating whenever the accused demanded money. A murder case has been registered at Bhagaluru police station. PTI

4 students go to eat biryani but get mugged

Four engineering students were allegedly held hostage and robbed while returning after eating biryani at a popular food joint on the outskirts of the City, police said on Tuesday.

The incident occurred on 21 December when the students, riding two-wheelers, were heading back from an early morning visit to an eatery in Hoskote. The victims, all students of a private engineering college in Bagalur, were allegedly intercepted near a toll plaza by a group of men.

Police said the assailants thrashed the students, snatched their mobile phones and two-wheelers, and forcibly took them to a shed near Medahalli. The gang allegedly held them captive and robbed them of Rs 1.5 lakh, including Rs 40,000 in cash, while Rs 1.10 lakh was transferred from their bank accounts.

The students were later allowed to leave and managed to recover their vehicles, a senior police officer said.

One accused has been arrested in the case, and police are searching for the remaining suspects now. - PTI

Woman posing as relative steals gold at weddings

A woman was arrested for allegedly stealing gold jewellery and cash by posing as a relative and attending weddings at marriage halls here, police said on Tuesday.

With her arrest, police said they recovered 262grams of gold jewellery worth Rs 32 lakh.

According to police, a resident of Manjunatha Nagar said she, along with her mother, had gone to a marriage hall in Basavanagudi on 23 November to attend a relative’s wedding.

They kept a bag containing a 32-gram gold chain and an artificial collar chain in one of the rooms there.

After the function, they returned home and found the gold chain, worth about Rs 3 lakh, missing, police said.

A case was registered at the Basavanagudi Police Station.

“During the investigation, we apprehended a woman from her Udayanagar, KR Puram, residence on 1 December,” a police officer said.

During questioning, she confessed to thefts in two other cases and admitted stealing jewellery from marriage halls in other districts.

Police recovered the stolen gold from her home and a bank, where it was pledged for loans. - PTI

Foreign national ferrying cocaine from Mumbai to B’luru held

A foreign woman was arrested for allegedly transporting 121 grams of cocaine, valued at Rs 1.20 crore, from Mumbai to Bengaluru by concealing it in bread covers while travelling on private buses, police said on Tuesday. A mobile phone allegedly used for coordinating deliveries was also seized. Police have not disclosed the accused’s identity.

Acting on a tip-off that a foreign national residing within Varthur police station limits was supplying cocaine, the CCB Narcotics Control Wing conducted a raid and secured her, a senior police officer said. Investigators found that the woman arrived in Delhi in 2024 on a student visa but did not enrol in any institution, instead staying in multiple Mumbai suburbs.

She allegedly sourced cocaine from an associate in Mumbai and transported it to Bengaluru at his instructions, supplying the drug to designated locations and earning illegal proceeds. Preliminary investigation revealed she frequently used private buses and hid the contraband in bread and similar product covers to evade checks. A case under the NDPS Act has been registered at Varthur police station, and she is in judicial custody.