Renukaswamy murder case: Victim was administered electric shock, finds probe
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka police, probing the Renukaswamy murder case, has said Kannada film star Darshan Thoogudeepa had contacted several individuals soon after the alleged killing, while another accused has confessed that the victim was administered electric shock.
Aimed at escaping from "adverse legal actions" against him and meet the expenses to "cover up" the conspiracy and destruction of evidence, Darshan, accused number two in the case, had taken Rs 40 lakh from a friend, and the money has been recovered, they said.
Police have shared an update on the investigation in the remand application filed by the police before the 24th Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) court on Thursday, when they sought police custody of Darshan and three others, and judicial custody for his friend Pavithra Gowda, and remaining accused.
A total of 17 people including, Darshan and Gowda, are accused in the murder case.
According to police sources, Renukaswamy, a fan of the actor, had sent obscene messages to Gowda, which enraged Darshan, allegedly leading to his murder. His body was found near a storm-water drain next to an apartment in Sumanahalli here on June 9.
Police have said that the 47-year-old actor and other accused -- Dhanraj D, Vinay V and Pradosh -- did not cooperate with the investigation and tried to hide facts.
The court on Thursday extended the police custody of the four by two days till June 22. The rest were remanded to judicial custody.
Police have identified Pavithra Gowda, who is accused number one, as the "major cause" for Renukaswamy's murder, stating that it has been proved from the probe that she instigated other accused, conspired with them, and took part in the crime.
It has been found from the available evidence that Darshan is involved in the crime, using his money, other accused and his fanbase, and has misused the law of the land, they said.
During the probe, Dhanraj (accused number 9), in his voluntary statement, told police that he assaulted Renukaswamy and used the 'electric shock torch' to administer shocks to the deceased victim. The device has been seized by the police.
"He has not revealed from where he obtained the device and is hiding the information. He has to be probed further," police said.
As per police, Darshan had contacted several people after the crime, and inquiry needs to be done in his presence to ascertain the motive and reasons behind it.
There were some reports that a few influential people had tried to interfere in the probe, which however, was rejected by the police.
Darshan, in his revised statement, admitted to obtaining Rs 40 lakh from his friend Mohan Raj for escaping from adverse legal actions against him and to cover up conspiracy and destruction of evidence, according to police.
ALSO READ: Actor Darshan borrowed Rs 40 Lakh to destroy evidence in Renukaswamy murder case: Police
The police said they have recovered Rs 37.4 lakh from Darshan's house and Rs 3 lakh that he had given to his wife.
Accused Pradosh played the main role in the destruction of evidence and has not been cooperating with the investigation, and is hiding information, police said. He had taken another person to the crime scene and has not revealed the identity of that person. "He needs to be probed further."
Pradosh is also said to have thrown the mobile phones of the victim and accused number 4 -- Raghavendra in the "drainage," and efforts made to recover them have not yielded result.
Police have recovered Rs 4.40 lakh from Raghavendra's residence in the district headquarters town of Chitradurga. They have also recovered the victim Renukaswamy's gold ring and chain from Raghavendra's residence. Renukaswamy's mother has identified the recovered gold ring and chain.
According to sources, Raghavendra, who is part of Darshan's fan club in Chitradurga, had brought Renukaswamy to a shed in R R Nagar here, on the pretext that Darshan wanted to meet him. It was in this shed that he was allegedly tortured and killed, a police official said.
The investigation team is believed to have gathered enough evidence including CCTV footage, which could establish that Darshan was present during the alleged assault on Renukaswamy, leading to his death, sources said.
"From the spot of the crime, things such as lathi, wood pieces, also water bottle, blood stains and material evidence, DVR containing the CCTV footage have been recovered," the official had earlier said.
According to the autopsy report, Renukaswamy's death was caused due to shock and haemorrhage as a result of multiple blunt injuries he sustained, the sources added.
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Netanyahu recommends his Cabinet approve Hezbollah cease-fire proposal
Beirut, Nov 26: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that he would recommend his cabinet adopt a United States-brokered ceasefire agreement with Lebanon's Hezbollah, as Israeli warplanes struck across Lebanon, killing at least 23 people.
The Israeli military also issued a flurry of evacuation warnings — a sign it was aiming to inflict punishment on Hezbollah down to the final moments before any ceasefire takes hold. For the first time in the conflict, Israeli ground troops reached parts of Lebanon's Litani River, a focal point of the emerging deal.
In a televised statement, Netanyahu said he would present the ceasefire to Cabinet ministers later on Tuesday, setting the stage for an end to nearly 14 months of fighting.
Netanyahu said the vote was expected later Tuesday. It was not immediately clear when the ceasefire would go into effect, and the exact terms of the deal were not released. The deal does not affect Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, which shows no signs of ending.
The evacuation warnings covered many areas, including parts of Beirut that previously have not been targeted. The warnings, coupled with fear that Israel was ratcheting up attacks before a ceasefire, sent residents fleeing. Traffic was gridlocked, and some cars had mattresses tied to them. Dozens of people, some wearing their pajamas, gathered in a central square, huddling under blankets or standing around fires as Israeli drones buzzed loudly overhead.
Hezbollah, meanwhile, kept up its rocket fire, triggering air raid sirens across northern Israel.
Lebanese officials have said Hezbollah also supports the deal. If approved by all sides, the deal would be a major step toward ending the Israel-Hezbollah war that has inflamed tensions across the region and raised fears of an even wider conflict between Israel and Hezbollah's patron, Iran.
The deal calls for a two-month initial halt in fighting and would require Hezbollah to end its armed presence in a broad swath of southern Lebanon, while Israeli troops would return to their side of the border. Thousands of Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers would deploy in the south, and an international panel headed by the United States would monitor all sides' compliance.
But implementation remains a major question mark. Israel has demanded the right to act should Hezbollah violate its obligations. Lebanese officials have rejected writing that into the proposal. Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz insisted on Tuesday that the military would strike Hezbollah if the U.N. peacekeeping force, known as UNIFIL, doesn't provide “effective enforcement” of the deal.
“If you don't act, we will act, and with great force,” Katz said, speaking with UN special envoy Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
The European Union's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said Tuesday that Israel's security concerns had been addressed in the deal also brokered by France.
“There is not an excuse for not implementing a ceasefire. Otherwise, Lebanon will fall apart,” Borrell told reporters in Italy on the sidelines of a Group of Seven meeting. He said France would participate on the ceasefire implementation committee at Lebanon's request.
Bombardment of Beirut's southern suburbs continues
Even as Israeli, US, Lebanese and international officials have expressed growing optimism over a ceasefire, Israel has continued its campaign in Lebanon, which it says aims to cripple Hezbollah's military capabilities.
An Israeli strike on Tuesday levelled a residential building in the central Beirut district of Basta — the second time in recent days warplanes have hit the crowded area near the city's downtown. At least seven people were killed and 37 wounded, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry.
Three people were killed in a separate strike in Beirut and three in a strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon. Lebanese state media said another 10 people were killed in the eastern Baalbek province. Israel says it targets Hezbollah fighters and their infrastructure.
Earlier, Israeli jets struck at least six buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs. One strike slammed near the country's only airport, sending plumes of smoke into the sky. The airport has continued to function despite its location on the Mediterranean coast next to the densely populated suburbs where many of Hezbollah's operations are based.
Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee issued evacuation warnings for 20 buildings in the suburbs, as well as a warning for the southern town of Naqoura where UNIFIL is headquartered.
UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti told The Associated Press that peacekeepers will not evacuate.
Other strikes hit in the southern city of Tyre, where the Israeli military said it killed a local Hezbollah commander.
The Israeli military also said its ground troops clashed with Hezbollah forces and destroyed rocket launchers in the Slouqi area on the eastern end of the Litani River, a few kilometres from the Israeli border.
Previous ceasefire hopes were dashed
Under the ceasefire deal, Hezbollah would be required to move its forces north of the Litani, which in some places is about 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the border.
A ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the strongest Iranian-backed force in the region, would likely significantly calm regional tensions that have led to fears of a direct, all-out war between Israel and Iran. It's not clear how the ceasefire will affect the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Hezbollah had long insisted that it would not agree to a ceasefire until the war in Gaza ends, but it dropped that condition.
Hezbollah began firing into northern Israel, saying it was showing support for the Palestinians, a day after Hamas carried out its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, triggering the Gaza war. Israel returned fire on Hezbollah, and the two sides have been exchanging barrages ever since.
Israel escalated its campaign of bombardment in mid-September and later sent troops into Lebanon, vowing to put an end to Hezbollah fire so tens of thousands of evacuated Israelis could return to their homes.
More than 3,760 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon the past 13 months, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The bombardment has driven 1.2 million people from their homes. Israel says it has killed more than 2,000 Hezbollah members.
Hezbollah fire has forced some 50,000 Israelis to evacuate in the country's north, and its rockets have reached as far south in Israel as Tel Aviv. At least 75 people have been killed, more than half of them civilians. More than 50 Israeli soldiers have died in the ground offensive in Lebanon.
After previous hopes for a ceasefire were dashed, U.S. officials cautioned that negotiations were not yet complete and noted there could be last-minute hitches that delay or destroy an agreement.
“Nothing is done until everything is done,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.
While the ceasefire proposal is expected to be approved if Netanyahu brings it to a vote in his security Cabinet, one hard-line member, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, said he would oppose it. He said on X that a deal with Lebanon would be a “big mistake” and a “missed historic opportunity to eradicate Hezbollah.”
