A self-styled godman, identified as Yogesh, alias Bhaiyya Bapu Khairnar, was arrested following the alleged double murder of a 25-year-old woman and her male friend at his ashram in Maharashtra's Jaitane village, as per the Hindustan Times.
The victims, Jayshree Rajnikant Kakuste-Hire, a private finance company employee, and her friend, Akshay Gangadhar Sonawane, were reportedly killed after attending a late-night ritual organised by Khairnar on the occasion of Shani Amavasya.
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According to police officials, after Sonawane fell ill and began vomiting post-ritual, Khairnar offered to take Jayshree home on a moped, during which he allegedly strangled her to death when she resisted a sexual assault attempt.
Upon returning to the ashram late at night, a suspicious Sonawane questioned the accused about Jayshree's whereabouts and their switched-off phones, prompting Khairnar to allegedly bludgeon him to death with an iron weapon to cover up the initial crime, reported the Hindustan Times.
To destroy evidence, the accused godman allegedly transported Sonawane's body in a bullock cart and dumped it in a secluded, branch-covered ravine behind the ashram. Investigators suspect Khairnar intended to burn the body to frame Sonawane for Jayshree's murder and make it appear as though he committed suicide out of guilt.
The double murder was discovered on Saturday morning when Jayshree's body was found on the Raipur-Bhadgaon road in Nizampur, with a stone placed on her body and her face covered to destroy evidence. A canine squad traced a saffron handkerchief to the accused's ashram.
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During interrogation, he confessed, and police later recovered the second victim's body hidden behind the ashram.
"As of now, it does not appear to be a case of human sacrifice. However, we are exploring all possible angles. Since only three people were present at the spot and two of them are dead, we need to verify every statement made by the accused," Ajay Deore, additional superintendent of police, Dhule, told the Hindustan Times.
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