IMPHAL, June 25: In a major setback to all who are seeking justice for Richard Loitam, a Bangalore court has released the two main accused involved in the alleged murder case on bail.
The sensational alleged murder case was transferred to the Karnataka CID Crime Branch from Madanayakanahali Police Station following an order from the Karnataka government on June 5 last.
The two accused namely, Vishal and Syed Afzal Ali both staying in the same hostel as Richard were arrested by sleuths of Karnataka CID and later remanded to judicial custody.
The Karnataka CID Crime Branch swiftly started investigation into the case registered by the police after it was transferred to the former in response to a directive of the state government, Rameshchandra, the Investigating Officer (IO) of the case and Superintendent of Police, CID In-charge told IFP Monday.
He said the CID Crime Branch had accordingly booked Vishal and Syed Afzal Ali.
They were produced before the Court of Principal District and Sessions Judge, Bangalore on June 8 last and remanded to judicial custody but the court later on June 18, granted bail to them, Rameshchandra said.
He, however, said the duo has been released on “conditional bail” with a security bond of Rs 1 lakh each, apart from one local surety each and another from the respective families.
Asked about the progress of the case, albeit the duo has been released on bail, Rameshchandra said the report of the post mortem examination of Richard’s body is now with the Forensic Department of the All India Institute of medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.
He also said the forensic experts of AIIMS will re-examine the autopsy report and the same will be sent to CID for further investigation.
The probe into the case will be started after appropriately fixing the section of law even though the case has already been registered, he maintained.
Notably, the post mortem report pertaining to the alleged Richard murder case was first submitted by Department of Pathology at Victoria Hospital, Bangalore Medical College.
Besides the report, a pathology professor at the hospital also submitted a clarification on Richard’s Medico-legal Case (MLC) to the head of the Forensic Medicine Department.
But for the investigating agency, an official report from AIIMS is awaited, the SP, CID In-charge said.
Asked about anything that can be exhibited with regard to the case, he said a mobile handset has so far been recovered but no SMS were available on it.
Richard, who was a student of Archarya Institute of Technology, Bangalore, was found dead in his hostel room on April 18 last after an alleged brawl with his seniors over an IPL match some days back.