Date:04/03/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/03/04/stories/2005030416960500.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Two Nepalese among five held in murder case

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, MAR. 3. Five persons, including two Nepali nationals, were taken into custody by the Saifabad police on Thursday in connection with the murder of a retired railway employee, Ali Mirza. Investigation revealed that it was a murder for gain.

The octogenarian widower, who was living alone in his Khairatabad residence, was murdered on December 31, 2004. Among the five arrested was Bahadur, a watchman of a building under construction, who was living on the ground floor of the victim's house.

He was not paying any rent, but was helping out the old man in routine works. A few days before the murder, a person came to meet Mirza in his absence.

The watchman learnt that the stranger was to hand over a bag containing money to Mirza. " Bahadur hatched a plan to kill the senior citizen and take away the money," a police officer said. The watchman, with the help of two labourers and two Gurkhas, allegedly smothered Mirza to death.

They, however, found only Rs. 25,000 inside the bag. The police learnt that the money was acquired by Mirza through one of his friends for payment of municipal tax.