Popular Kannada actor Darshan Thugudepa, who was arrested in connection with the murder of his 33-year-old fan Renukaswamy, was partying at a pub in Bengaluru on the day of the latter’s murder. They also said that Darshan later went to the shed after the party where Renukaswamy was kidnapped and tortured before his death.
Darshan’s friend Pavitra Gowda, who was arrested in the case, was present in the shed at the time of Renukaswamy’s attack, sources said. Renukaswamy had written abusive messages against her on social media, which angered Darshan, police said.
After Renukaswamy’s murder, the three accused went to a Reliance Trends store in RR Nagar in Bengaluru to change their clothes as the original clothes they were wearing were stained with blood, they said
On Monday, Bengaluru police took the accused to the same shop to recreate the crime scene. Darshan can be taken to Mysore to recreate the crime scene.
According to sources, Renukaswamy’s gold chain and wallet have been found at accused Raghavendra’s house in Chitradurga. The accused also removed the gold chain of the fan.
Renukaswamy, an autorickshaw driver and member of Darshan’s fan club, was abducted on June 8 from Chitradurga district after sending abusive messages to Gowda. Later his body was found near Sumanahalli Bridge in Bengaluru.
Renukaswamy’s postmortem report revealed that he was tortured and given electric shocks before his death. Dhanraj, who was arrested on June 16 in this case, had disclosed the details of the alleged torture.
Police have so far arrested 19 people including Darshan and Gowda in this case.
