Investigators continued to search the compound of senior journalist Gauri Lankesh’s residence in Rajarajeshwari Nagar in West Bengaluru even past midnight, only a few hours after she was shot dead there by unidentified assailants.
After a few hours of investigation, four bullet cartridges were recovered from the scene of crime. Although the rain stalled the investigation for some time, the team resumed the search once it subsided.
Bengaluru Police Commissioner, T Suneel Kumar said the police teams will continue to comb the premises for evidence.
She was definitely shot from a close range. Only a post-mortem report can confirm how many bullets hit her.
For updates on the Gauri Lankesh murder case, read: Gauri Lankesh Murder Live
Kumar added that there are no eye-witnesses to the attack.
One of her neighbours made a call to the local police station, informing about the attack. However, he has not seen the attack. He told our officers that he heard bullet shots and saw the body when he came out of his house. He said he heard sound of scooters as well.
One of the investigators said that cops are still unsure whether the incident was captured on CCTV camera.
We know of two CCTV cameras installed in the house. We are yet to go through them. One of the cameras is in front of the door of the house and it is pointed towards the gate, we are hoping we will get some good evidence from it.MN Anuchet, Deputy Commissioner of Police, West.
Although the examination of the CCTV footage is awaited, police said the crime scene suggested that she was attacked after she got out of her car.
Her car was parked just outside the gate and the doors were found closed. We suspect that the attackers were waiting for her near the house. When she got out of the car and was walking towards the house, they shot her.MN Anuchet
Although the motive of the murder and whodunit was of everyone’s interest at the crime scene, police officers said that it was too early in the investigations to comment on motive.
“Teams are currently focusing on crime scene and forensic investigation,” Suneel Kumar said.
Karnataka Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy, however, said there were similarities between Lankesh’s murder and the murder of professor MM Kalburgi, who was shot dead two years ago. He, however, refused to comment further.
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