An incident that might shake the coastal town of Mangaluru, Karnataka, went on a rampage as different parts of the city reported a different piece of a dismembered woman’s body on May 12, 2019. The gruesome discovery was after a fruit vendor Somesh who reported to have found a woman’s head inside a bag on National Highway 66. The victim was later revealed to be 39 years of age Shrimathi Shetty, a Mangalore resident running a chit business and an electronics shop.
Body Parts Found All Over Mangaluru
After the head, there were other disturbing calls to the Mangaluru police. One of them came from locals near a Christian cemetery where there was a woman’s torso. She had been partially devoured by stray dogs. The following day, another body part was reported on the roadside. This time it was two legs. The police took the body parts and sent them to post-mortem at Wenlock District Hospital.
Around the same time, another missing complaint was lodged by Kishore Shetty for his sister, Shrimathi. When her remains were displayed before him, Kishore identified the victim as his sister.
Multiple Suspects, No Clear Leads
According to Indian Express, the police began investigating and questioning the background and connections of Shrimathi. She was separated from her husband and had an affair with Sudeep, who was already imprisoned on charges of theft. Both the men were initially suspected of the crime, but through further scrutiny and cross-questioning, it was discovered that neither of them had anything to do with the murder case.
Then, the police turned their focus towards Shrimathi’s shop and interrogated her employees. However, her employees also did not give them a clue. After scanning her routine and calling records, the police took a new turn with heightened efforts in tracing her last movements.
CCTV Footage Hints Towards Killer
It was through a breakthrough that the police scanned more than 100 CCTV cameras in the city. In the two-second clip, Shrimathi was seen talking to a man on a two-wheeler near Sooterpete on the morning of May 11, 2019. The man was identified as Jhonas Samson, a kebab vendor who had borrowed Rs 33,500 from Shrimathi but still owed her Rs 16,000.
Motive And Arrest
On May 14, the police reached Samson’s house. At the sight of the police, Samson tried to commit suicide but was saved. In the interrogation process, Samson confessed to the murder. He testified that on May 11, Shrimathi presented herself before him in front of his wife, Victoria Mathias; she demanded repayment. Humiliated by being addressed publicly, in anger, Samson beat Shrimathi with a wooden plank and killed her.
The husband and wife then hacked the body to pieces and began scattering portions all around Mangaluru. The sensational case was finally brought to an end with the taking into police custody of Samson and Victoria.
