Murder of IPS Officer’s Wife: Domestic Help Seems Prime Suspect
Investigators found that Kalpana had earlier worked in Lucknow, and a team has been dispatched to the Uttar Pradesh capital to speak to her former employer
Hyderabad: Special teams investigating the murder of Tanuja Ray, wife of retired DGP Vinay Ranjaan Ray, have identified their house help Kalpana as the prime suspect in the crime, which also involved the theft of valuables. Police sources said Kalpana was assisted by three associates.
After examining CCTV footage, police said she allegedly signalled to the associates to enter the house and was later seen exiting the premises. The gang then went to Nampally railway station, where they appeared to board a train.
Four persons, including domestic help Kalpana (36), are involved in the murder and loot. Police said Kalpana signalled to her three accomplices waiting in a park adjacent to the building. After the accused murdered Tanuja and collected jewellery and other property, they fled.
Investigators found that Kalpana had earlier worked in Lucknow, and a team has been dispatched to the Uttar Pradesh capital to speak to her former employer. Other teams have been sent to Delhi, Mumbai, Gorakhpur and areas along the Nepal border.
CCTV footage showed Kalpana leaving Ray’s house at 1.40 am and pointing towards a nearby park. Three associates joined her, and together they entered the house. Around 3 am, Kalpana and her associates were seen leaving with two heavy bags. They took an autorickshaw to Nampally station.
Police said the accused tied Tanuja’s hands and feet and gagged her before removing gold ornaments and cash. Silver jewellery was also stolen.
Two male associates were later seen buying tickets at Nampally station. CCTV footage from the reservation counter and platform showed them boarding a general compartment of the Telangana Express.
Railway police confirmed that Kalpana and her Nepalese associates were spotted in the footage. The video has been filtered using software and sent to police teams in Delhi, Lucknow and Gorakhpur, including law and order, intelligence and railway officials.
Daughter finds Tanuja gagged, dead
Police said former IPS officer Vinay Ranjan Ray’s daughter first saw her mother Tanuja, her arms and legs tied, in a chair hours after the murder occurred early on Friday. Ray, a retired DGP from Andhra Pradesh, had gone to Bengaluru for medical treatment on May 1.
According to police, their daughter Sunanda had called a carpenter to complete some work in her room in the morning. When he arrived, she opened the main door of the house to let him in. She then went to her mother’s room, where she saw Tanuja lying unconscious on the chair with her hands and feet tied and her mouth gagged.
Sunanda immediately called her younger sister and alerted neighbours about the incident. They rushed Tanuja to a hospital, where doctors declared her dead.
After Ray left for Bengaluru, Tanuja had reportedly asked prime suspect Kalpana to sleep in her room and lock the servant quarters. Kalpana had been working with the Ray household for about a year.
