Cherrapunji (Meghalaya) [India], June 13 : In a development in the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case, Albert Pde, a local guide from Meghalaya's Mawlakhiyat village, said that he had spotted Raja and Sonam Raghuvanshi with three men. The guide said that he was able to identify one of them from the photographs provided by the police.
Albert had offered his services to Raja and Sonam Raghuvanshi on May 22. The couple refused and chose another guide.
The next day, Pde saw them again, this time, with three unidentified men, climbing 3,000 steps towards Mawlakhiyat.
Speaking to ANI, Pde said, "On May 23, I saw the couple climbing up with three men. The men were walking ahead, and the woman was behind them. They were talking in Hindi. I was able to identify one of the suspects from the photographs provided by the police."
Superintendent of Police (SP) Vivek Syiem disclosed that the murder was orchestrated by Raj Kushwaha, who was identified as the mastermind behind the killing.
SP Syiem said, "The mastermind of this is Raj Kushwaha. Sonam played along with this plan. The three people involved are friends; one is Raj's cousin. It was not a contract killing. They did it as a favour for their friend. Since they were in Indore, they have been planning how Sonam would disappear since February. When Raja and Sonam got married, they came to the Kamakhya Devi Temple. The other four people also came here a few days before. They planned to eliminate Raja in Guwahati. Sonam made the plan to come to Shillong."
The police have arrested the accused, and further investigations are underway to uncover additional details in the case.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the court remanded all five key accused, including Sonam Raghuvanshi, to eight days of police custody in the Raja Raghuvanshi murder case, said police.