Bhubaneswar: Almost 23 days after the blood-soaked body of a transgender was found near Uttara Chhak on NH-316, police have arrested the third suspect in the case from Ramachandi area in Odisha’s Puri district.
The accused has been identified as Chhabina Kandi (35).
According to source, Kandi, who had been absconding since the incident, was hiding in a hut near Barapada village under Ramachandi police limits. He was nabbed during a raid conducted by Ramachandi police lead by officer Bichitra Nanda Parida and was then handed over to Pipili police, who are investigating the case.
With this, the number of arrests in the case has risen to three.
On February 11, the prime suspect, 25-year-old Krushna Kandi, was caught after an encounter with police near the Pipili-Puri bypass. Another suspect, Sunil Kandi alias Geja (22), was picked up from Mathasahi under Konark police limits within the next 24 hours.
Body of the 25-year-old transgender, a yoga instructor from Salepur residing in Bhubaneswar, was recovered from an isolated stretch of NH-316 near Uttara Chhak, close to the Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA) on February 1. The victim was stabbed multiple times following a scuffle after the trio allegedly attempted to snatch her bag and was declared dead upon arrival at Capital Hospital here.
