In a major breakthrough, the Odisha Police Crime Branch has apprehended the prime accused, Binod Kumar Behera, in the high-profile murder case from Balianta that shook the state earlier this month.
The arrest marks a significant step forward in the investigation of the brutal assault that led to the death of a GRP constable, Soumya Ranjan Swain, in the Bhingarpur-Kaja area.
Acting on substantial evidence gathered during the probe, a CID team nabbed 48-year-old Binod Kumar Behera, son of Rama Chandra Behera and a resident of Satya Nagar, Bhubaneswar, from Indupur in Kendrapara district on the night of May 25, 2026.
Police sources described him as the “main culprit” involved in the fatal assault on the victim on May 7, 2026. The case, registered at Balianta Police Station (Case No. 221/2026) and later taken over by the Crime Branch (CID CB PS Case No. 06/2026), involves charges under Sections 103(1) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which pertain to murder and related offences.
With Behera’s arrest, the total number of accused persons detained in the case has now reached 16. The Crime Branch has confirmed that the accused played a direct role in the assault on the deceased. Investigations are continuing at a fast pace, with teams working to trace and arrest the remaining individuals linked to the incident.
