A heinous crime has come to light in Chhattisgarh, where a disabled man was murdered, encased in cement, and placed inside a suitcase, which was then stuffed into a steel trunk. The discovery led to the arrest of a married couple at Delhi airport, suspected of masterminding the gruesome act.
The victim, identified as Kishore Paikra, a disabled man who required a wheelchair for mobility, was allegedly murdered over a land brokerage dispute. According to Raipur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Lal Umed Singh, preliminary investigations suggest that Ankit Upadhyay, a Raipur-based lawyer, and his wife Shivani Sharma, conspired to kill Paikra. Ankit's father is a retired Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) of the Chhattisgarh police.
The chilling discovery was made after residents of Raipur's DD Nagar area reported a foul odor emanating from an abandoned trunk near a roadside bush. Upon investigation, police found Paikra's body encased in cement inside a suitcase, which was itself locked within a steel trunk. Forensic experts determined that the victim's throat had been slit with a sharp weapon, and his limbs were bound, indicating a premeditated murder. The body was contorted to fit inside the suitcase. The cement was likely used to suppress the odor and delay the discovery of the body.
CCTV footage from the area proved critical in identifying the suspects. The footage showed a car entering DD Nagar on Monday, with two men getting out and removing the trunk containing the body. A woman, her face covered, was seen following the car on a two-wheeler. Police noted that the car had a tampered number plate. Further investigation led the police to a steel trunk factory in Raipur's Golbazar area, where the shopkeeper identified the couple as having purchased a heavy-duty trunk on Sunday morning, paying online under the name Shivani Sharma. The trunk was delivered to Indraprastha Colony via auto rickshaw.
The investigation revealed that Paikra had sold a plot of land in Mohadi village with Ankit's assistance for Rs 50 lakh but had allegedly received Rs 20 lakh less than the agreed price. It is believed that Paikra threatened to file a police complaint against Ankit, leading to the lawyer allegedly orchestrating his murder.
The couple was apprehended at Delhi airport while attempting to flee. A special team from the Chhattisgarh Police, with assistance from the Delhi Police, tracked them down. They were brought back to Raipur for further interrogation. Ankit's father declined to comment, stating that he had no connection with his son and that they lived separately.
This heinous crime bears similarities to other disturbing cases where victims' bodies were concealed in cement or suitcases. In one case from March 2025, a Bengaluru techie stuffed his wife's body into a suitcase after stabbing her to death. In another case from 2023, a man in the UK was jailed for life for murdering his disabled former partner and hiding her body in a suitcase.
The Chhattisgarh police are continuing their investigation to gather more details about the murder, including the exact date, time, and motive. The case has sent shockwaves through the community, highlighting the lengths to which some individuals will go to conceal their crimes.
