mangalore today

Man guns down wife, her brother and father before killing himself


Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, June 19, 2014:  A 30-year-old man went on a shooting spree, killing his wife, her brother and her father before turning the gun on himself in Outer Delhi’s Bakhtawarpur Garhi village on Wednesday afternoon.

murderAccording to police, around 1 pm, Sonu (30) who had driven down from his house in Noida, called his wife Poonam (26) and her brother Tarun (24) and asked them to come and meet him in Pallagaon, a km away from Poonam’s house. They drove there in their Maruti Esteem. He shot both of them while they were seated inside the car, police said.

After that, he drove over to his wife’s house and gunned down his father-in-law, Gopal Singh, who was standing on the front porch. He then walked into the house, called out to his mother-in-law and, unable to find her, shot himself dead with a pistol and a country-made gun.

“Sonu and Poonam got married in 2010. They have a two-year-old son. Their relationship began to sour after Poonam started to frequent her parents’ place against Sonu’s will. The immediate trigger was Poonam insisting on attending Tarun’s wedding, which was to take place on June 20. Sonu allowed Poonam to go but kept back their son,” Poonam’s cousin Manish Singh said.

“Today, Sonu called Poonam and Tarun saying he had to give them a shopping list for Tarun’s wedding. He asked them to come to Pallagaon. The siblings drove there and Sonu shot them in their heads,” Manish said.

According to police, Sonu pumped three bullets into his father-in-law Gopal who was instructing cooks about wedding preparations. Sonu then walked into the house full of guests and called out to his mother-in-law Rajo. When he could not find her, he shot himself in the head, police said. None of the family members heard the gunshots as they were busy with the sangeet ceremony, police said.

Police, on being alerted, reached the spot and rushed Gopal and Sonu to hospital. On being told that Poonam and Tarun had gone to meet Sonu at Pallagaon, police rushed there and took those two to the hospital as well.

All four were declared brought dead at the hospital. A team from the Crime Branch and the forensics was called in to examine the crime scenes. Besides the two guns, two knives and a magazine of about 56 bullets were found in Sonu’s car, police said.

“It appears that Sonu had planned the murder in advance. He had procured the weapons for the murder and had come with the intention of killing all his wife’s relatives,” an officer said.

“After the murders, Sonu’s relatives and friends who were in our house fled. I feel his family too abetted the crime,” Poonam’s brother Bablu alleged.

Sonu, a filter-water supplier, had been pressuring Poonam for a car and money, Poonam’s relatives said. He was miffed with her family and he had stopped visiting his wife’s