Kathmandu, August 20

Twelve years after the gruesome killing of five members of a family, including three minors, at Badikhel-6 (now Godavari-8) of Lalitpur, Metropolitan Police Crime Division has finally cracked the mystery surrounding the murder after arresting an alleged murderer today.

Chandra Bahadur Pahari, now 63, of Godavari-8, Lalitpur, who was apprehended from Jhaukhel, Bhaktapur, is a close relative of the victim. He had allegedly hacked Bhanu Nagarkoti aka Hira Lal, 36, the victim’s wife Dhana Kumari, 30, son Rabindra, 13, and daughters Luri, 10, and Tulki, 8, to death at midnight October 3, 2003 when they were asleep. Bhanu was the Pahari’s brother-in-law (younger sister’s husband).

SSP Sarbendra Khanal, MPCD in-charge, said that the dossier of past investigation, interrogation of victims’ relatives, local residents and the rigorous probe recently opened by police had resulted in the logical conclusion that a relative was involved in the massacre of the family.

“Though police had arrested Pahari twice, he was released due to lack of evidence corroborating his involvement. Recently, we launched a new phase of investigation by collecting substantial evidence against him and announced the close of the 12-year-old family murder case,” he informed.

Pahari was living in Changunarayan, Bhaktapur for the past three years to hoodwink the law enforcement agency.

Pahari, a butcher by profession, has admitted to killing Nagarkoti’s family members with a cleaver one by one ‘to avenge Bhanu’s illicit relationship with his wife’. He had threatened to kill Bhanu (his brother-in-law) and Dhana Kumari (sister) six days before the murder in a dispute.

“Bhanu (my brother-in-law) had carried on an illicit relationship with my wife and I repeatedly told him not to spoil my marital life. After he did not pay attention to me, I decided to kill him and his wife. As I entered his house, I encountered the three children and killed them first before murdering the couple,” he told police during interrogation.

Though police had formed four probe panels to resolve the case in the past, they had failed to link Pahari to the incident. He has been handed over to Metropolitan Police Range, Lalitpur to initiate legal action action against him under ‘Homicide Chapter’ of Muluki Ain.