Police have arrested a 40-year-old woman in Uttar Pradesh on charges of murdering her husband. Ruby Sharma, from Agra, allegedly buried her husband Surendra’s body under the bathroom floor of their home and continued to live there for weeks while pretending he was missing.
Police blew the lid off the crime while investigating the 44-year-old’s disappearance. They found inconsistencies in the family’s data and noticed suspicious withdrawals from ATMs, HT reported earlier.
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Their investigation led them to the bathroom of the couple’s home in Renuka Dham Colony in Dehtora in Agra. They dug up the ground and found remains believed to be Surendra’s.
Officials sent the remains for post-mortem examination to determine the exact cause of death.
The case
A missing person’s complaint regarding Surendra Sharma was registered at Sikandra police station on May 26, ACP Hariparvat Ameesha said.
“During the investigation, the police found that his wife had killed him and buried the body in their house, covering it with concrete plaster. Legal action ensued, as the police broke through the floor and recovered the body. After completing investigation procedures, the body was sent for autopsy. The accused, Robbie Sharma, is in custody and is being interrogated, with further legal steps being taken,” the officer told ANI.
During interrogation, Ruby allegedly confessed to the murder.
Alleged abuse and alcoholism
Police said Surendra Sharma had been unemployed for some time and was addicted to alcohol. Investigators say he often asked his wife for money to finance his drinking, and allegedly beat her when she refused.
A neighbor told PTI that the couple often quarreled.
The couple has been married for about 16 years and has two daughters. Their primary source of income was Surendra’s late father’s pension, which was shared between Surendra and his brother Anil Sharma.
Police believe he was killed on May 18.
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Anesthetize the husband first
Investigators reportedly found that Ruby first mixed a large quantity of sleeping pills into a bowl of kheer and served it to her husband.
The couple’s daughters did not suspect anything unusual when they saw their father lying motionless on the bed, as they were accustomed to seeing him sleeping for long hours after drinking alcohol.
Police believe that Robbie killed Surendra after he lost consciousness. However, investigators are awaiting the coroner’s report to determine the exact cause of death.
The next morning, Ruby allegedly dropped her daughters off at Surendra’s brother’s house before returning home alone.
The body is buried under the bathroom floor
Police allege that Ruby dug a hole in the bathroom of the house, buried her husband’s body underground, and sealed the grave with concrete before laying new tiles over it to conceal the crime.
Missing complaint
After his disappearance, Surendra’s brother Anil filed a missing person’s complaint. The police continued to search for Surendra for nearly 45 days.
Ruby also called the police and reported her husband missing, which helped reinforce the impression that he had simply disappeared.
ATM withdrawals exposed the crime
Anil later notices suspicious activity in the family’s bank account. Surendra was carrying the ATM card linked to the account into which the family pension was deposited. Even after he was reported missing, money continued to be withdrawn from the account, HT had reported earlier. Anil then called the cops again.
Police found a buried skeleton
Police began examining the family’s statements more closely and eventually focused their search on the home. When officers opened up the newly tiled bathroom floor, they recovered a skeleton buried under the concrete.
Police are looking for potential accomplices
Deputy Commissioner of Police Syed Ali Abbas said investigators were still trying to determine whether Ruby acted alone.
He added that burying a body underground would have been difficult for one person, and police are investigating whether anyone else helped commit the murder or dispose of the body.
He said: “It seems that the task of killing the man and burying the body in the same house is a difficult task for a woman alone. At present, we are still looking for links with anyone other than the woman involved in the crime.”
(With inputs from reporters and agencies)
