The investigation into the alleged murder of Ketan Agarwal at Maharashtra's Lohagad Fort has taken a new turn, with Pune Rural Police claiming that the prime accused, Siya Goyal, told investigators it was "easier" to kill her fiance than tell her family she did not want to marry him.
According to investigators, Goyal made the statement during custodial interrogation. Police also claimed she said she disliked Agarwal because he wore a wig. When asked why she had not informed her family that she wanted to end the engagement, she allegedly replied that she did not want to hurt them, according to News18.
Police allege conspiracy with co-accused
Police further claimed that Goyal had informed Agarwal that she did not wish to marry him, but he refused to call off the engagement. Investigators allege that she then conspired with her lover and co-accused, Chetan Chaudhary, to kill him.
Meanwhile, Ketan Agarwal's father, Vishal Agarwal, said his son wore a small hair patch and that Goyal's family had been informed about it before the engagement.
"Wearing a wig cannot be a reason to kill my son," Agarwal told reporters.
Family members questioned during probe
As part of the investigation, Pune Rural Police on Friday questioned Goyal's brother, Sahil Goyal, at the district police headquarters.
Investigators examined whether he was aware of Goyal's relationship with co-accused Chetan Chaudhary and whether he had informed other family members.
"On reaching Lohagad Fort, we discovered a deceased man with severe head injuries, including a crushed skull, and multiple bruises on his limbs. He had died," Sunil Gaikwad told ANI.
Twenty-five-year-old Ketan Agarwal died after allegedly being pushed off a cliff at Lohagad Fort in Pune district on June 18. Following his death, his fiancee, Siya Goyal, 22, and her alleged lover, Chetan Chaudhary, 25, were arrested on charges of conspiring to kill him.
Recalling the rescue operation, Gaikwad claimed that while others at the scene were visibly distressed, Siya "appeared calm."
"Notably, Siya was present during the retrieval but appeared calm and not overtly emotional, unlike the other onlookers who were loudly distressed," he told ANI.
Gaikwad added that rescuers had to carry Ketan's body through the jungle and faced difficulty retrieving it due to the steep terrain.
"The police station received the call at 10.30 am. The operation continued till 12.30 pm, and we handed the body over to the ambulance at 1.30 pm," he said.
Accused allegedly deleted chat history
As the investigation progresses, police have claimed that both Siya and Chetan deleted their phone chat history and emptied their recycle bins before and after the crime.
"During our investigation, it was revealed that both the accused deleted their chats before June 18 and after the Lohagad incident from their phones. The chats were also deleted from the recycle bins of their respective phones," a police officer associated with the investigation told PTI.
According to the police, the two accused had been in contact for nearly six months before the incident and exchanged 2,004 phone calls.
Investigators also alleged that Siya and Chetan met at a cafe on the day of the crime to finalise the murder plot and selected the exact spot at Lohagad Fort where Agarwal would allegedly be pushed.
Police said Sahil Goyal, who reportedly introduced Siya to Chetan, was questioned for over 10 hours on Friday. According to investigators, he told police he had known about the relationship for several months and had urged his sister to end it because she was engaged to Ketan.
