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New Delhi: What initially appeared to be a natural death has now been revealed as a meticulously planned murder. Police have arrested an 18-year-old man for the killing of a software engineer in East Bengaluru. Investigations revealed that the accused, identified as Karnal Kurai K, killed Sharmila K after she resisted his sexual advances on January 3. To destroy evidence, the teenager allegedly set the flat on fire and fled.
The incident took place earlier this month when Sharmila K was found dead in her rented apartment in Subramanya Layout, Ramamurthynagar. Police discovered her unconscious body after receiving a fire alert from the security guard. The Accenture employee was later declared dead. Initially, police termed the case a natural death caused by suffocation due to the blaze. However, further investigation altered this conclusion.
Forensic reports revealed that the victim had sustained injuries and died before the fire broke out. One of Sharmila’s friends had also raised suspicions over the circumstances surrounding her death.
Following this, police interrogated 18-year-old Karnal Kurai L, a pre-university student who lived in the flat adjacent to the victim’s apartment. During questioning, the teenager allegedly confessed to the crime and admitted to setting the flat on fire to conceal the murder.
According to Karnal’s statement, he entered Sharmila’s flat around 9 pm through a sliding window. He allegedly expressed his sexual intentions, and when Sharmila resisted, he became enraged and held her mouth and nose shut, rendering her unconscious.
The accused then attempted to destroy evidence by removing the victim’s clothes and setting them on fire before escaping through the same window. The fire subsequently spread to the rest of the apartment.