Bengaluru, Jan 12 (AHN) The murder of a woman software professional has taken a new turn, with police investigating the case on suspicion that the accused sexually assaulted the 34-year-old techie before killing her, police said on Monday.

The incident was reported under the Ramamurthynagar police station limits on January 3.

Preliminary investigation had revealed that the accused, over 18-year-old Karnal Kunal K, a second-year pre-university student, smothered the victim to death when she resisted his advances and later set fire to her flat to conceal the crime. The police cracked the case and arrested the accused on Sunday.

Police are now strongly suspecting that the accused sexually assaulted the techie before killing her. Sections 64(2) (rape), 103 (murder), and 238 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita have been invoked. The development has raised concerns over the safety and security of women in the city.

According to the police, on January 3 at around 9 p.m., the accused allegedly sneaked into the house of techie Sharmila Kushalappa, a native of Mangaluru, and attempted to rape her as she was living alone. When she resisted, the accused allegedly smothered her to death.

The accused allegedly set fire to the flat and escaped with her mobile phone to destroy evidence. Initially, the police suspected that the techie had died in a fire caused by an electrical short circuit. However, the post-mortem report and subsequent investigation confirmed that it was a case of murder.

The accused, a native of Madikeri district, lived with his mother in the same building, next door to the victim’s flat. Injury marks on her hands and signs of struggle had earlier raised police suspicion. The post-mortem report confirmed that the injuries were inflicted before death and that she was smothered.

The accused allegedly confessed that after she rejected his advances, he held her nose and mouth shut, rendering her unconscious. He then removed her clothes, placed them on the bed, set them on fire, and escaped through the same sliding window.

The police are awaiting the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report. Further investigation is underway. The accused is currently remanded to judicial custody.