Jharaphula Murder Mystery Cracked: The RD Student Was Killed For Rs 30,000, Says Police

Jajpur: Three months after the abandoned body of Jharaphula Nayak’s was found near a road at Jajpur in January this year, the Jajpur police on Thursday claimed to have cracked the murder mystery of the RD University student.

Revealing the mystery behind the sensational murder, Jajpur SP, Rahul PR told a packed press conference that the third year plus III student had been done to death by her boyfriend Rakesh Swain following a tiff over Rs 30,000.

Rahul said that Rakesh had borrowed more than Rs 30,000 from the deceased to purchase a motorcycle.

However, the relationship between Rakesh and Jharaphula turned sour after the latter started asking him to return the money.

On January 24, the deceased had visited Bhubaneswar to attend a birthday party and insisted Rakesh to return the money. Jharaphula even threatened Rakesh to reveal the matter before his parents if he did not return her the borrowed money, the SP said.

“We suspect the exact amount would be over Rs 30,000. Rakesh murdered Jharaphula by smothering her,” said the SP.

On January 26, the accused had invited Jharaphula on the pretext of returning the money. He had asked her to wait at an OYO hotel in Bhubaneswar.

“The accused forced Jharaphula to drink alcohol and later killed her by smothering her. We had sent her viscera for tests which confirmed the presence of liquor in her body,” said Rahul PR.

It is pertinent to mention here that body of the plus three student was recovered by the side of a road near Mulapala at Kuakhia in Jajpur district on January 27.

While two accused including the prime accused Rakesh Swain was arrested edarlier, the third accused Shaktisekhar Swain, who was absconding since the incident, was arrested today.

The duo had abetted the prime accused in booking the hotel room and later disposing of the body. They had also helped in destroying evidence, police said.