Body recovered from suitcase in Odisha forest: wife among 3 held

Khordha: Police apprehended three persons in connection with murder of a youth, whose body was recovered from a suitcase in forest under Nachuni police limits in Khordha district yesterday.

The deceased person has been identified as Manoranjan Mohapatra (32), a resident of Lakhapada village under Ranpur police limits.

The body was found from a suitcase at Haripur forest under Nachuni police limits in Khordha district yesterday. Police identified the body and apprehended three persons including wife of the deceased within 12 hours.

According to reports, locals, who had entered into the forest for collecting firewood, spotted a blue suitcase on Sunday. They informed the local police station immediately following which police reached the spot and found a youth’s body inside the suitcase.

The preliminary probe suggested that the youth was strangled to death. During investigation, police arrested wife and two others in connection with murder of the youth.

“It was a pre-plan murder by his wife, one of his cousins and an associate. They bought a suitcase, strangulated him to death, kept the body inside it and dumped it in the forest,” informed Khordha SP Siddharth Kataria.

As per primary investigation, the motive behind killing the youth was torture. The accused revealed that the youth sometimes used to torture her. Being frustrated with husband, she planted to eliminate him, he added.