A plumber allegedly stabbed three people — a couple and a domestic help — to death with a screwdriver in broad daylight on Tuesday in Vishnulok Colony in the Raipur area of Dehradun. Local residents caught the accused, following which the police arrested him. The accused, identified as Rajkumar, a native of Bijnor district in Uttar Pradesh.
Officials said that the incident took place around 3 PM at the house of the couple, Ramesh Kapoor (85) and his wife Rajni Kapoor (76). The domestic worker, Thilya Devi, was also allegedly attacked when she tried to intervene in the scuffle.
The Dehradun senior superintendent of police Pramendra Singh Dobal said that a financial dispute between the accused and the couple led to the murders. He said that the police recovered the weapon used in the crime and further investigation was underway. According to the SSP, Rajkumar had known the couple for around three years and was called by them for plumbing work. A dispute over payment allegedly broke out between them, following which Rajkumar attacked the couple. The domestic worker was reportedly leaving for home after finishing her work when she noticed a scuffle inside the Kapoor residence. She entered the house to help the couple, but the accused allegedly attacked her as well.
A local resident who helped catch the accused said, “I was standing outside a library when a boy came to me and said that a thief had entered a house and a woman was shouting. I caught the accused from his scooter and noticed blood stains on his t-shirt. We took him back towards the house and saw the horrifying scene inside.”
Local residents alleged that the accused also took a gold chain from the house. They said that the accused knew that the elderly couple lived alone. Some residents claimed that more than one person may have been involved, while the police said that only Rajkumar’s involvement had surfaced so far.
