Meghalaya: 50-yr-old woman murdered in Garo Hills; SIT formed to probe case

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TURA:

A 55-year-old woman was dragged out of her house while her daughter and son-in-law were locked inside before she was shot and then had her throat slashed by a group of unidentified attackers late Friday night in West Garo Hills (WGH) district of Meghalaya.

According to an FIR filed by the brother of the victim, identified as Jenolish M Marak of Karshengdhap village, about five to six armed miscreants entered the victim's house, threatened her family, then dragged the 55-year-old woman out of her house, took her to the courtyard and fired at her.

In the meanwhile, the scared family members were huddled in fear within the house after two of the attackers stood by at the door of the victim’s house, threatening to kill them if they tried to intervene.

The miscreants then slashed her throat so hard that her neck was severed from her body.

“After being sure that the attackers had left the house, the family ventured out to check on the victim and found her in the state with blood all over the place. She was killed instantly and the family members informed the headman of the incident after which the police were informed,” said the FIR.

The FIR was filed at the Tikrikilla Police Station under which the incident took place.

A local source said that the killers could not be seen because of the darkness, but they were heard during the entire episode. However, they are yet to be identified.

The family, through the FIR, has urged prompt action by the police so that the suspects could be found and punished accordingly.

The reason behind the "cold-blooded murder" of the 55-year-old woman is yet to be ascertained though most believe there could be a personal angle.

Confirming the development, the WGH Superintendent of Police (SP), Dr MGR Kumar said that the case was under investigation.

“We are looking at all angles of the case and are hopeful of a breakthrough soon. The body of the woman was sent to Tura for post mortem. As it is a woman-related crime, a Women’s team was also sent to look into all aspects of the case. We will be able to update once more information is available,” said Dr Kumar.

Given the severity of the crime, the SP stated that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to investigate the murder.

The SIT would be led by the Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) – Raksamgre and will consist of the second Officer-in-charge of Tikrikilla, a woman officer from Tura along with the Cyber Crime Investigation Centre (CCIC).