Murder accused arrested 20 years after 'dying'

Delhi Police has arrested a former Navy employee, an accused in a case of murder, 20 years after his ‘death’.

The accused had burnt two laborers alive in the truck in a bid to stage his death. After this he declared himself dead and started living under a changed name. His wife was taking pension also.

According to the reports the police received information that a person named Balesh Kumar was living in Najafgarh area by changing his name to Aman Singh. After this the team laid a trap and caught him.

Police investigation revealed that on May 1, 2004, Balesh Kumar had himself set his truck on fire in Jodhpur. Bodies of two people were recovered in this accident. One of them was identified as Balesh Kumar, while the other deceased could not be identified.

The police also found out during investigation that after declaring himself dead, Balesh Kumar had got the insurance and pension transferred to his wife's name, the truck in which he showed the accident was registered in the name of his brother Mahinder Singh. The accused had also got the full insurance claim of the truck transferred to his wife's name.

The accused said during interrogation that under the influence of alcohol, he along with his brother Sundarlal had strangled a person named Rajesh to death in Transport Nagar, Samaypur Badli in 2004. At that time all three were drinking alcohol. Balesh had a fight with Rajesh's wife over illicit relations. After the murder, he dumped Rajesh's body in Bawana area.

The police had arrested Sunder Lal in the murder case, while the death certificate of Balesh was presented in the court. After this, accused Balesh changed his name to Aman Singh and got Aadhaar card, PAN card and driving license made in the same name. Then on the basis of these documents a bank account was also opened. Accused Balesh Kumar is originally a resident of a village near Panipat. He has studied till 8th class. After this, he joined the Navy in 1981 and retired in 1996. After retirement, he started living in Uttam Nagar with his family in the year 2000. At present the accused was working as a property dealer.