Bengaluru cab driver arrested after missing person report uncovers seven family murders

Bengaluru police have arrested a cab driver and local publisher after a missing person complaint exposed the murder of seven members of his wife's family across two weeks in the city.

The suspect, identified as Indushekhar, allegedly killed his wife, her mother, two brothers-in-law, two sisters-in-law, and a seven-year-old nephew at his residence on 59th Cross near Bhashyam Circle in Rajajinagar. The murders were uncovered after Tungamma, the mother of victim Nalini, reported to the Srirampura police station on 3 November that her daughter's phone was switched off and her house locked.

How police exposed the killings

After finding Indushekhar's house locked as well, Tungamma filed a missing person report. Srirampura police launched an immediate inquiry, speaking to neighbours in the Rajajinagar locality and deploying technical tracking teams. Investigators traced the family's mobile phone signals, which were moving together alongside Indushekhar's location.

Police officers intercepted Indushekhar's car in Halasuru as he drove back into the city. Inside the vehicle, officers found an 11-year-old nephew alive, along with a hand cover containing the victims' mobile phones, which Indushekhar had allegedly used to reply to messages and pretend the family was away on a holiday.

Investigation and legal action

Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said the accused confessed during interrogation to killing the victims individually between mid-October and early November before dumping their remains in various parts of the state. Officers have recovered the body of seven-year-old Puneeth near Nandi Hills in Chikkaballapur district and seized a grinding stone believed to be the primary weapon, alongside the vehicle used in the crime.

Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge confirmed that preliminary findings suggest the killings were pre-planned, stemming from long-standing domestic friction and claims by the accused of feeling humiliated by his in-laws. Senior police officers are supervising search operations across Chikkaballapur and surrounding districts to locate the remaining six bodies. Police Commissioner Singh stated that law enforcement is assembling comprehensive physical and technical evidence to present before a fast-track court to ensure swift justice.