In a major development in cameraman Manas Swain murder case, the Crime Branch on Wednesday stumbled upon a major piece of evidence confirming use of prime accused Sharmistha's car in the sensational crime.
A CCTV visual obtained from Tangi toll gate has conclusive evidence to establish that Sharmistha along with other accused had gone to Chandikhole in Jajpur district in her car probably after burying Manas’s body in Nayagarh.
The footage collected by the investigating agency from Tangi toll gate shows Sharmistha’s car (OD 02 BA 6599) cross the gate at 12.28 am on February 9 before going towards Chandikhole. The car returned from Jajpur side the same night and the CCTV cameras captured the vehicle passing through the toll gate at 1:59 am.
Meanwhile, the Crime Branch has confirmed that the accused had transported weapons like spade, pickaxe etc. used in the crime in the car to dispose of them. The probe agency has also recorded the statement of a witness under Section 164 of CrPC on Wednesday.
Informing about the latest development, Crime Branch ADG Sanjeeb Panda said, “Today we have recorded the statement of a witness. Earlier, we had recorded the statements of three witnesses. Besides this, we have also prayed for custodial interrogation of two accused and TI parade of five accused.”
The five accused to face the TI parade include prime accused Sharmistha Rout, her aide Jhunu Bhoi, Ranjan Nayak, Vivek Nayak and Bhagyadhar Nayak.