Petrol pump attendant helps crack murder case

Calls police when man offers commission for swiping a credit card and handing over the cash

August 19, 2014 11:59 pm | Updated 11:59 pm IST - Bangalore:

The presence of mind of a petrol pump attendant helped police arrest a man suspected of murdering his 60-year-old employer in Channammanakere Acchukattu on Monday night.

The suspect, Ravindra (30), tried to strike a deal with the attendant of a petrol pump in Jalahalli. He asked the latter to swipe a credit card for Rs 1,000 and give him the cash in return for a small percentage of the money. Suspecting something fishy, the employee alerted the others who caught Ravindra before alerting the police. Seeing the police approaching, his associate fled. During questioning, Ravindra revealed that they had murdered a man a few hours earlier. The credit card belonged to the victim, Narasimhan Iyenger, a retired computer engineer who was staying alone after his two sons and wife settled in London.

The duo believed that Iyengar had a lot of money and jewellery in his home. “His associate, Chandra, used to work at Iyengar’s home. He knew that Iyengar lived alone and the layout of the home,” a police officer said.

On Monday night, they entered the house and smothered Iyengar. “They removed all signs of a struggle and laid the body in such a way that it looked like Iyengar died in his sleep,” the officer said.

However, the duo were unable to locate valuables or money in the house. They left with some silver items and Iyengar’s credit card. Since they did not know the PIN number, Ravindra decided to swipe the card at a petrol pump. “The haste and greed of the accused not only led to his arrest but also exposed the murder,” Additional Commissioner of Police Alok Kumar said. The police have registered a case of murder. Appreciating the presence of mind of the petrol pump attendant, Mr. Kumar said the police are considering a felicitation.

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