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Bengaluru Murder: Fire Used to Hide Crime
12 Jan
Summary
- Student allegedly smothered engineer after rejection, then set flat ablaze.
- Victim found unconscious after fire, initial cause suspected smoke inhalation.
- Autopsy revealed injuries before fire, indicating a struggle and smothering.
A brutal crime unfolded in east Bengaluru when a murder was initially misidentified as a house fire. A second-year student, Karnal Kurai K, allegedly smothered Sharmila Kushalappa, a 34-year-old software engineer, after she rejected his advances. He then set her apartment ablaze in a calculated effort to conceal his actions.
Sharmila, who lived alone, was discovered unresponsive in her locked flat following a fire on the night of January 3. While initial suspicions centered on smoke inhalation, forensic and postmortem findings contradicted this, revealing injuries inconsistent with accidental burns and indicating death by smothering before the fire.
The accused, who lived next door, confessed to entering Sharmila's flat, confronting her, and then suffocating her when she resisted his advances. He reportedly attempted to destroy evidence by burning her bloodstained clothes before escaping, leading authorities to reclassify the incident from a tragic accident to a premeditated murder.
