KOLKATA: A 79-year-old woman was found murdered, her hands and feet tied, in her bungalow inside New Garia Cooperative Society on Friday morning while her 83-year-old husband was found tied up in a bedroom on the ground floor. Electrical wires, including those connecting CCTV cameras and the doorbell, were found severed.
Bijaya and Prasanta Das were the only inmates of the two-storey house. Their son lives in Mumbai and their daughter in Germany.
Joint CP (crime & traffic) Rupesh Kumar said the couple's maid, Madhumita Haldar, arrived at the house around 5.45 am and rang the bell. When none opened the door, she called out to the couple. On getting no response, she went to the rear entrance and found the door latched from outside.
She entered the house and found Bijaya lying unresponsive near the staircase with multiple injuries on her head and face. She raised an alarm and informed the couple's son. Police arrived around 6.25 am. Prasanta was found lying on the floor next to his bed in an adjacent room. Cops said he was in a state of absolute shock. He was administered saline and removed to a relative's residence. Till evening, he could not be questioned.
Prima facie, cops said, all ornaments worn by the victim are missing. Police are waiting for her children and relatives to ascertain if anything else is missing from the house.
"It seems financial gain was the motive. It could be a property-related murder too. We have come to know that the elderly couple was ill recently and needed hospitalisation and their children had arranged for a large amount to pay for their medical expenses. We need to ascertain if that money was the target," said an investigating officer.
The couple was largely confined to their home and had hired a caregiver for Prasanta on Aug 17. The caregiver, a resident of South 24 Parganas, used to stay in the house from 8 am to 8 pm. Cops are eager to question Prasanta and his caregiver at the earliest.
The investigators are exploring whether the assailants had prior access to the home or if the CCTV system was disabled from outside. The rear door of the house was found open, raising suspicions that the assailants may have gained access through that door.
(With inputs from Debabrata Shome)