Chandigarh police collect crucial evidence linking the taxi driver to three rape-murders

The UT Police has delved deeper into the criminal history of taxi driver Monu Kumar (38), the accused behind three gruesome rape-murders in Chandigarh, and collected more compelling evidence against him.

According to investigators, Kumar first raped and murdered a 22-year-old MBA student in Sector 38 West in July 2010 over a period of 14 years.

Almost 12 years later, in January 2022, a 40-year-old woman from Maloya became a victim of the defendant’s brutality. His third victim was a 55-year-old woman whom he raped and murdered in the forest area of ​​Sector 54 on February 28 this year.

During investigations following his arrest on May 1, police found that Kumar had sold the phone he stole from the first victim for a small price ₹300 at a shop in the now demolished Colony Number 4. The shop owner clearly identified the accused, police said.

Additionally, evidence from the 2024 case revealed that Kumar intentionally turned off his cellphone hours before the murder at 7:47 p.m. and turned it back on at 4:04 a.m. the next day.

Police have seized surveillance camera footage showing him approaching the road from the wooded area. They also recovered the blood stained clothes of the accused as captured in the CCTV footage.

The defendant’s cell phone, which is registered in his mother’s name, further supports his presence at the crime scene.

His DNA report has confirmed his involvement in the 2022 case, while reports are awaited for the 2010 and 2024 cases.

Police officials revealed that Kumar initially confessed to the murder in 2022, followed by an admission of guilt for the 2010 case in subsequent interrogation. Finally, during his final prison sentence, he confessed to the murder in 2024.

Consistent approach

In all three cases, Kumar’s modus operandi remained consistent, hitting his victims with a large stone, causing severe facial disfigurement, police said.

His elusive nature, marked by the absence of mobile phones, PAN cards or Aadhaar cards, intensified the police’s battle to arrest him. The lack of eyewitnesses also meant that the cases remained unsolved.

The breakthrough in the investigation came in 2023 after similarities were found in the 2010 and 2022 cases, which was further confirmed by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory that the sperm recovered from the bodies of both victims belonged to the same man.

While profiling over 800 suspects since 2023, police called Kumar to Maloya police station to give blood samples.

Blood samples of three suspects, including Kumar, were sent to the CFSL for analysis in August last year and the results, which arrived seven months later in May this year, confirmed his involvement, leading to his arrest.