#JUSTIN: Gujarat Man Who Killed Woman, Cut Her Ears to Steal Gold, Caught in 10 Hours

A 54-year-old woman was brutally murdered and buried in a shallow grave in Gujarat’s Mehsana district, with police alleging that the accused mutilated her body to steal jewellery. The incident came to light on March 20 in Indrad village, sending shockwaves through the local community due to the gruesome nature of the crime and the apparent motive of financial gain.

The victim, identified as Shardaben Thakore, had gone missing earlier, prompting concern among her family members. As she failed to return home, her relatives began tracing her last known movements using CCTV footage. The footage revealed that she had entered a property known as Savita Amrit Farm but was never seen exiting the premises, raising suspicion and leading investigators to focus their search in the area.

Upon reaching the farm, investigators noticed signs of freshly disturbed soil beneath a lemon tree, along with an unusual presence of flies hovering over the spot. A closer inspection led to excavation at the site, where Shardaben’s body was discovered buried in a shallow pit. Police reported that her ears had been severed, and gold ornaments worth approximately Rs 4.40 lakh were missing from her body.

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The Mehsana Local Crime Branch (LCB), along with Nandasan Police, launched a swift investigation and were able to identify a suspect within hours. The accused, Sachinkumar Mukundbhai Dantani, was arrested within 10 hours of the body being recovered, marking a rapid breakthrough in the case.

Police said the arrest was facilitated by a crucial tip-off regarding a man attempting to sell around 1 kg of silver anklets. Acting on the information, officers apprehended Dantani and recovered stolen jewellery worth Rs 3.40 lakh along with the alleged murder weapon. During interrogation, the accused reportedly confessed to committing the crime.

According to police officials, Dantani cited mounting financial debt as the primary motive behind the murder. He allegedly targeted the victim to rob her of valuables and took extreme measures to conceal the crime. The accused is currently in police remand until March 27 as further investigation continues to uncover additional details and verify all aspects of the case.

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