Mason held week after Murshidabad triple murders

BEHRAMPORE: A 20-year-old mason was arrested on Tuesday for murdering primary school teacher Bandhu Prakash Pal, his eight-month pregnant wife Beauty and eight-year-old son Angan in Murshidabad’s Jiagunj a week ago.
Police claimed Utpal Behera, Pal’s former student, nursed a grudge against him for refusing to refund or even provide a receipt for a Rs 24,160 investment in a bank insurance scheme.Behera claims to have “invested” the money he borrowed from his father Madhab after Pal promised him quick returns.
Behera, police said, was picked up immediately after the murder but let off. However, after CID joined the probe and tracked the cellphones, their suspicion narrowed down to a few persons, including Behera. He was summoned to Jiagunj police station on Monday evening and grilled till he confessed. A local court remanded him in 2-week police custody.
Police had become suspicious after Behera tried to mislead investigators. He could not explain the bloodstained investment certificate and his movements immediately before and after the murder. Murshidabad SP Mukesh Kumar said: “Utpal’s alibi was that he was in Sagardighi that day. His cellphone indicated he was in Azimgunj immediately after the murder and had called the victim at 10.37 am.” Kumar said Behera knew were Pal lived and yet claimed he knew nothing.
According to the police ve-rsion, Behera killed the three in five minutes before fleeing. As per Beauty’s cellphone details, a WhatsApp call was made from her phone at 12.03am and a video call at 12.06am. Milkman Rajib Das arrived at 12.11am to find the three dead. Police say Behera hacked the three with a chopper during this 5-minute gap.
Police said the primary murder motive was Pal’s refusal to refund his money or provide him a receipt. The dispute had led to a showdown a month ago, with Behera claiming Pal used obscene language and a racial slur. However, Behera’s father Madhab disputed the police claim, saying: “He had no enmity with Pal. That day, he had gone to Sagardighi to get a glass cover for his phone.”
Critical to the police probe is the testimony of a local resident Alpana Pal, who claimed that she saw a youth change from a dark shirt and trousers to a T-shirt and three-quarter pants near a pond. Behera, police said, had dumped the blood-drenched clothes there and fled.
The clothes and murder weapon have been recovered. A slipper and back pack, ostensibly belonging to Behera, were found in Pal’s home while the bloodstained insurance certificate was seized.