Mangaluru, Feb 10: Prabha Shetty, a techie from Bantwal taluk in Dakshina Kannada, who was fatally stabbed in Australia nearly two years ago, may have been a victim of contract killing commissioned by persons known to her in her homeland, according to sources privy to the investigation.
A three-member team from New South Wales police, headed by homicide department commander Richi Sim and comprising constables L Daniel and Bika Singh, arrived in Karnataka on January 14 and questioned Prabha's family, friends and colleagues before flying back on January 28.
The Australian team questioned Prabha Shetty's husband Arun Kumar, a software entrepreneur in Bengaluru, for more than five hours, a local police source privy to the developments said. "Taking help from CID police, the team visited Prabha Shetty's parental house in Amtur near Kalladka in Bantwal taluk, and interacted with them. It is said the team gained a vital clue during this visit," the source added.
A senior technical analyst with Mindtree, Prabha Shetty was in Sydney on an assignment and was living alone in Stratfield, Sydney. On her way home after meeting a client on March 7, 2015, Prabha Shetty was speaking to her husband on the phone when she was attacked in Parramatta Park around 9pm. She was critically injured in the park, and died later.
Her valuables - handbag, wallet, mobile and gold chain - were found intact, hinting that robbery may not have been the motive. The victim's only daughter, now 11, was staying in Bengaluru with her father when the tragedy struck the family.
"The team questioned 28 persons during its stay in Karnataka. Prabha Shetty's husband, parents, close family friends and colleagues were questioned and it has been videographed. During their interaction with local police, the Australian team said it suspects a close family member to be the prime accused," the sources said.
An email sent to one of the members of the Australian police team that visited Bengaluru did not get a response. Prabha, who flew to Australia in 2012, had applied for citizenship of that country, according to police sources here.
"We are told that Prabha's decision to become an Australian citizen was opposed by close family members. We think this could have sparked off a tussle and led to the killing," the source said, adding, "Investigations revealed that a close family member was upset with Prabha over a property-related issue. The man in question had accused Prabha of becoming a nuisance in getting his share of property."
Police had summoned the victim's husband Arun Kumar to Australia twice - in 2015 and 2016 -for questioning. During one such visit, Arun Kumar reportedly told Australian police they were a happy couple. "We had asked whether there were differences between Prabha and Arun, to which he had said they had a good relationship," a CID source quoted Australian police as saying.
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