How an omelette piece, AI and UPI payment helped MP police crack blind murder case

A piece of an omelette, artificial intelligence and a UPI payment helped Madhya Pradesh police in cracking a blind murder case where a woman's body was found in Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior last week, and her face was thrashed by a heavy rock.

The woman's body was found in the forest area under the Gola Ka Mandir police station's jurisdiction in Gwalior on December 29. Since her face was nearly destroyed, police were facing difficulties in identifying her, an official said, adding that they then sought the help of AI to develop a sketch of her, news agency ANI reported.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dharmvir Singh described the case as a "challenging one" and said that clues like a piece of omelette and online payment helped them untangle the case and track down the accused.

"It was a blind case, and the woman could not be identified. Prima facie it was a very brutal murder case. During the investigation of the case, initially, when the body was checked, a piece of omelette was found. Based on it, food stalls within a 200-meter radius were questioned, and it was found that a woman had eaten an omelette with two men," he told ANI.

Singh further stated that officials also examined CCTV footage of that area, and found that the two men had made an online payment for the omelette. He said that police followed this trail and arrested the accused, Sachin Sen, a resident of Gwalior, on Tuesday morning.

The deceased woman hailed from Tikamgarh and had been living with her husband for some time. However, she reportedly came in contact with Sen a week ago and started living with him.

SSP Singh stated that Sen doubted that she had relationships with several men, and the resultant resentment made him plan her murder.

"The accused took her to a forest area near the main road, and then crushed her head with a rock, killing her. Evidence, including a jacket and other items, was collected from the scene. AI was also utilised to develop a sketch of the woman and coordinated with Tikamgarh Police," Singh was quoted as saying.

He added, "After that, with the help of all the evidence, CCTV footage, field input, and forensic evidence, police were able to identify the victim and arrest the accused."

The senior official also said that the woman had been in a relationship with the accused and had been living with him for the past seven to eight days.