Sundargarh stabbing: Man killed by 3 assailants, one accused dies fleeing
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
A man from Jharkhand was stabbed to death by three bike-borne assailants in Odisha's Sundargarh district during the intervening night of Sunday and Monday, while one of the accused died in a road accident while attempting to flee the scene, a senior police official confirmed on Tuesday, 30 June.
How the Attack Unfolded
The victim, Shivdhan Lohar of Chaingada, Ranchi (Jharkhand), had accompanied his friend Anmol Mallik, a resident of Talsara in Sundargarh, to the Government Medical College and Hospital in Sundargarh on Sunday evening to drop off a patient. The two were returning separately — Mallik in a Scorpio SUV and Lohar in a Maruti Alto — when three bike-borne men began pursuing them on the stretch between Subdega and Talsara Chowk around midnight.
According to police, the assailants initially attempted to stop Mallik's Scorpio, but he accelerated toward Talsara without stopping. The three men then intercepted Lohar's Alto near Talsara, dragged him out of the vehicle, assaulted him with a knife, and snatched his wallet and mobile phone.
Victim Dumped Into Stream Near Railway Overbridge
The assailants allegedly forced Shivdhan Lohar back into the Alto and drove to the Duduka railway overbridge, where they stabbed him multiple times before throwing his body into a stream below the overbridge. The sequence of events — robbery, assault, and then a second, fatal stabbing at a separate location — points to a premeditated and organised attack, according to police.
One Accused Killed in Escape Bid, Another Hospitalised
As the three accused drove away toward Bhedabahal in the victim's Alto, the vehicle overturned on the coal corridor road near Khamarbahal in the early hours of Monday. Staff from the Bhasma Police Station responded to the accident and rushed the injured to the District Headquarters Hospital in Sundargarh.
One of the accused, Suvendu Sekhar Majhi, sustained grievous injuries and died at the accident spot. A second accused, Bhumeswar Behera, was shifted to a hospital in Rourkela for further treatment. A third accused — a juvenile who sustained minor injuries — has been apprehended by police.
Evidence Seized, Investigation Ongoing
Police have seized the weapon of offence — a knife — along with the Maruti Alto that the accused had taken from the victim. The case falls under the jurisdiction of Talsara Police Station. Investigators are expected to examine the motive behind the targeted attack, particularly why the assailants pursued the two vehicles on a highway stretch late at night. The hospitalised accused, Behera, is likely to face questioning once medically stable.