In a chilling development, the decomposed body of missing woman constable Subhamitra Sahoo was exhumed on Wednesday afternoon from a remote jungle area in Ghatagaon, Keonjhar district.
The recovery, supervised by a magistrate, required the use of a JCB excavator to dig up the site, where the body was found encased in a cement barrel and buried approximately 10 feet underground. This breakthrough occurred during the ongoing investigation into Sahoo’s disappearance from Bhubaneswar, which has led to the arrest of a prime suspect, fellow constable Deepak Rout, and his cousin.
Police Commissioner S. Dev Datta Singh confirmed the details, stating that evidence suggests a brutal murder stemming from a financial dispute. “Subhamitra was on duty on September 6, but she went missing the following day. A missing persons report was filed at the Capital Police Station, prompting our team to launch a thorough investigation,” Singh said. Call records indicated that her last communication was with Deepak, who quickly became a suspect. After intense interrogation, Deepak confessed, leading to his arrest along with his cousin who allegedly assisted in disposing of the body.
According to Commissioner Singh, Deepak had borrowed 10 lakh rupees from Subhamitra earlier. Tensions escalated when she demanded the money back for wedding expenses, resulting in a heated argument. In a fit of rage, Deepak strangled her to death. Further concerns arise regarding a 1 crore life insurance policy taken out in Subhamitra’s name, with investigators exploring the possibility that the murder was also motivated by a payout scam. “After the murder, Deepak and his cousin transported the body from Bhubaneswar to Keonjhar and buried it in the jungle,” Singh added. The vehicle used in the crime has been seized.
The case takes a darker turn with revelations about Deepak’s past. The accused, who married Subhamitra in July 2024, was previously married; his first wife died in an accident, after which he claimed a 1 crore insurance payout. That incident is also under suspicion, and a fresh investigation has been initiated.
Police from the Ghatagaon station and Bhubaneswar’s special crime unit jointly recreated the crime scene in the jungle in the presence of a magistrate, demonstrating how the duo buried the body. A separate site inspection was conducted at the location of the murder in Bhubaneswar. “The investigation is ongoing, and more details will emerge soon,” the commissioner assured, highlighting that two suspects have been apprehended so far.
Subhamitra, who worked at the DCP office, returned home around 7 PM on September 6 after her duty. Her phone switched off shortly thereafter, prompting her father to file a report two days later following unsuccessful searches. The case underscores vulnerabilities within the law enforcement community, as the victim was reportedly in a relationship with her colleague.
