MEERUT/BAREILLY: In a rural patch of Bareilly district, a shadow of fear looms large as nine women have been found murdered over the past 14 months in chillingly identical manner.
Spanning a 25km radius and encompassing villages under two police stations, these gruesome discoveries have revealed a disturbing but distinct pattern. The victims, all aged between 45 and 55, were found strangled in fields around noon, with their clothes dishevelled but no signs of sexual assault.
Uttar Pradesh DGP Prashant Kumar told TOI on Wednesday, “Our teams have been investigating this case for six months and have not ruled out the possibility of a serial killer due to the nearly identical modus operandi of the murders.Based on some leads, we have now released sketches of three suspects.”
Bareilly SSP Anurag Arya told TOI,”The pattern is clear, strangulation around noon, bodies dumped in farms, and post-mortem ruling out sexual assault. Our investigations, including electronic surveillance, have hit a dead end.”
Investigative agencies suspect that three arrested accused might not be real culprits, as killings persisted even while they were behind bars. Senior officials are now scrutinising details of prisoners recently bailed or released. Unable to crack the cases, cops have reverted to traditional methods, releasing sketches of suspects after interviewing farmers across 90 villages.
Victims 45-55yo, strangled around noon, left in fields
The nightmare began in June last year when the first body was found, and the latest victim appeared on July 3, when a 45-year-old woman was discovered lifeless at a farm in the Shahi Sheeshgarh area of Bareilly. By Nov last year, the body count had escalated to eight, causing widespread panic among residents. Police arrested three men but the murders continued, deepening the mystery and terror.
The killings took a brief hiatus of seven months, only to resume with the latest murder on July 3. Bareilly SSP Anurag Arya, speaking to TOI, expressed his bewilderment, “The pattern is clear – strangulation around noon, bodies dumped in farms, and post-mortem ruling out sexual assault. Our investigations, including electronic surveillance, have hit a dead end.”
Interestingly, investigative agencies suspect that the three arrested might not be the real culprits, as the killings persisted even while they were behind bars. Senior officials are now scrutinising the details of prisoners recently bailed or released.
Unable to crack the cases, police have reverted to traditional investigation methods, releasing sketches of the suspects after interviewing hundreds of farmers across approximately 90 villages.
As police continue their efforts, the haunting presence of the serial killer looms over rural Bareilly. Sharif Khan, Dharampura gram pradhan, said, “Despite CCTV cameras and constant vigilance, the killer remains at large. We have advised our women to move around in groups for their own safety.”
But fear and uncertainty have gripped these villages, leaving the residents desperate for answers. Suraj Gangwar voiced the community’s frustration: “It’s been over a year, and all the police have done is release sketches. This suspense is terrifying.”
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