Jagatsinghpur: Police in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district have apprehended the prime suspect in the brutal murder of 24-year-old Sasmita Das, whose half-naked body with multiple injuries was recovered from a field near Jogadhari village in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district on April 20, just one day after her engagement ceremony.
The accused, identified as her former lover Suryakant Swain alias Bubu from Tarikund area, was apprehended in Jamshedpur, where he worked, and was brought back to Odisha for further questioning on Wednesday.
The engagement ceremony of Sasmita, a resident of Kathiapada village under Jagatsinghpur Sadar police limits, was held at her uncle’s house in Dhuanapari under Tirtol police limits on April 19 and the wedding was scheduled for May 10. On April 20, between 8 pm and 8:30 pm, she left the house after a heated phone conversation and did not return. Villagers later found her body in a semi-naked condition in a nearby farmland, with deep neck injuries inflicted by a sharp weapon, raising initial suspicions of possible sexual assault prior to the killing.
Call Detail Records (CDR) confirmed that the heated exchange between the duo. It is being suspected that accused lured her to meet him, possibly at a market, took her on a motorcycle to a secluded spot, and committed the crime. He had reportedly informed her family earlier that he was heading to Jamshedpur.
The murder is being attributed to a strained five-year relationship and escalating financial conflicts. Family members said that Sasmita was in a relationship with the accused, who had bought land at Kathiapada, built a structure, and promised to transfer it to her name. She allegedly took loans amounting to several lakhs of rupees for the construction. The duo had performed a symbolic marriage by exchanging garlands, which was later used to obtain the loan.
Police found that the accused had also deposited money in Sasmita’s bank account, and he reportedly demanded its return before her engagement, sparking a major dispute.
Jagatsinghpur SP Ankit Verma confirmed that the estranged boyfriend is being questioned. The suspect may be taken to the crime scene for a reconstruction. Autopsy and medical reports on the deceased are still awaited to verify allegations of sexual assault prior to the murder, sources added.
