At 3pm last Saturday, a cab stopped at a shed in Rajarajeshwarinagar. Around 30 men were staring menacingly at the occupants. As S Renukaswamy, a devoted fan of Sandalwood star Darshan, stepped out, the group of men reduced to fewer than ten.

‘Why do we all have to teach this man a lesson?’ the men chuckled at Renukaswamy.

Renukaswamy, anxious throughout the final stretch of the four-hour journey from Chitradurga, felt relieved when the tough crowd at the shed dispersed. Taxi driver Ravi Shankar, who had transported Renukaswamy and some Darshan fans, shared this with fellow drivers upon returning to Chitradurga.

Ravi’s fellow drivers reported that he mentioned being kept outside the shed until late at night while unknown men repeatedly entered and exited. As a 28-year-old from Chitradurga, Ravi grew wary of the activities inside. His sole concern was receiving his payment to return home.

As night fell, Ravi learned from the whispered conversations among the men in the shed that Renukaswamy had been beaten to death. Concerned, he resolved to depart once he received his payment. Deep into the night, the men who had brought him urged Ravi to confess to the murder for a substantial reward, but he declined. Eventually, around 2am, he left after receiving Rs 4,000 for the journey.

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Two days later, after Darshan, his girlfriend Pavithra Gowda, and 11 others were arrested, Ravi discovered through the media that he had been implicated as a suspect in the case. Stunned by the news, he hurried to his colleagues and recounted the events. Following their counsel, Ravi turned himself in to a police officer in Chitradurga on Thursday.

His colleagues informed the media that, according to the cab driver, when he departed Chitradurga with Raghavendra, president of a Darshan fans’ association, and two other Darshan fans on Saturday morning, Renukaswamy did not expect to be assaulted and killed.

Another taxi driver, Mohan, informed reporters that Renukaswamy had not been forcibly taken to Bengaluru. According to Mohan, Renukaswamy had willingly stopped for lunch near a toll booth close to Tumakuru. Mohan emphasized that Renukaswamy did not attempt to flee from the team, even when given the opportunity to attend to personal needs without any conflict. ‘If he had felt his life was in danger, he could have escaped without difficulty,’ Mohan remarked.

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He mentioned that Ravi informed his friends that Jagadish, known as Jagga and a Darshan fan who works as an auto driver in Chitradurga, had reached out to Suresh, another cab driver, on Saturday morning to book a ride to Bengaluru. However, Suresh was already scheduled for a trip to Chikkamagaluru, so he suggested that Ravi take the Bengaluru trip instead. Suresh provided Ravi with Jagga’s contact details, prompting Ravi to get in touch with Jagga to discuss the fare. Ravi quickly proceeded to the designated meeting point near a gas station, where he picked up the four passengers: Renukaswamy, Raghavendra, Jagga, and Anu Kumar.

They were all engaged in discussing a social media comment regarding Pavithra Gowda and Darshan when Renukaswamy became aware of it. They repeatedly assured Renukaswamy that they would take him to Darshan and advised him to simply apologize for his social media post. Despite Renukamurthy’s attempts to convince them that he hadn’t made any negative comments.

Ravi drove to Madanayakanahalli on Tumakuru Road, then switched to NICE Road. Following a mobile location update, they arrived at a shed in Pattanagere, which turned out to be a seized parking yard. On Friday, Jagga and Anu Kumar, who had accompanied the taxi driver back to Chitradurga, were also apprehended.