Suchana Seth, accused of killing her 4-year-old son in Goa, texted her estranged husband on Saturday that he could meet his son
Suchana Seth, the start-up CEO who is accused of killing her four-year-old son in North Goa, was taken for a psychological test to assess her mental state and help find the motive for the gruesome crime, police said on Wednesday. Fresh details in the case say that Suchana Seth told her husband he could meet their son while she was in Goa with the kid.
Suchana Seth, co-founder of artificial intelligence start-up Mindful AI Lab, was caught in Karnataka's Chitradurga district on Monday night when she was travelling in a taxi, carrying her son's body in a luggage bag.
While Suchana Seth has denied killing her son, the post-mortem report of the child suggests that he was smothered to death by a pillow or a cloth, after which, police said, the start-up CEO even attempted suicide. Police have also recovered bottles of cough syrup from the Goa apartment where Suchana was staying.
The motive of the alleged crime is yet to be ascertained, however, some reports say that Suchana Seth did so to stop her husband from meeting her son. She reportedly filed domestic violence charges in August last year against PR Venkat Raman, her estranged husband with whom divorce proceedings were in the final stage.
Start-up CEO Undergoes Psychological Test: Suchana Seth was on Wednesday taken for a psychological test to assess her mental state and help find the motive for the gruesome crime, police said.
The police took Seth, booked for murder and destruction of evidence, to the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour near Panaji and got a psychological medical examination conducted on her.
"We are waiting for the report. The check-up was a part of regular protocol that is followed after arrest of an accused," news agency PTI quoted an official as saying.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said the state police will take the case to a logical end.
Empty Cough Syrup Bottles Found In Room: Two empty bottles of cough syrup were found in the Goa apartment room, where the Suchana allegedly killed her minor son. Police said the cough syrup bottles indicate Suchana Seth may have given a heavy dose of the medicine to her son in signs of a premeditated murder.
The post-mortem has revealed the four-year-old child was smothered to death either with a piece of cloth or a pillow, as per police officials.
Suchana Seth (39), allegedly killed her son in a service apartment at Candolim in Goa and stuffed the body in a bag before taking it to neighbouring Karnataka in a taxi on Monday, the police said. She was arrested from Chitradurga in Karnataka on Monday night and brought to Goa on Tuesday.
A senior police officer told PTI that during the inspection of the service apartment room where the woman stayed along with her son for a few days, they found two empty bottles (one big and another small) of cough syrup.
"The post-mortem conducted on the body has indicated the possibility that the child might have been smothered to death and there were no signs of struggle. We are examining the possibility if the woman gave a heavy dose of cough syrup to the child before putting him to death," the official said.
Enquiries with the service apartment staff revealed the woman had asked them to buy a small bottle of cough syrup for herself, he said, adding the bigger bottle might have been carried by her. "It looks like a pre-planned murder," the official said.
The accused also tried to die by suicide by slashing her left wrist, the police said earlier.
-How An Accident On Goa Border Led Cops To Suchana: A massive traffic jam caused by an accident near the border of Goa was among the many elements that led the police Suchana Seth while she was on her way to Bengaluru carrying her son's body in luggage, an NDTV report said.
"When she was fleeing Goa, she was stuck at Chorla Ghat due to an accident for four hours. This was a blessing in disguise. Had she reached Bengaluru, it would have been difficult to get the body of the child," the report quoted police sources as saying.
Chorla Ghat is located at the intersection of the Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra borders. It is nearly 55 kilometres from Belgaum in Karnataka.
-'You Can Meet The Child' | Suchana Told Husband: Suchana Seth, who is learnt to have filed domestic violence charges in August last year against PR Venkat Raman, her estranged husband and the child's father, sent a WhatsApp message to him on Saturday saying that he could meet the child.
"You can meet the child," an NDTV report quoted the message by Suchana Seth who was in Goa on Saturday. Venkat Raman, however, found out that the family wasn't in Bengaluru and later left for Indonesia, sources said, adding that he is likely to be called in a few days for interrogation.
Venkat Raman, meanwhile, has denied the allegations of domestic violence made during the couple's divorce proceedings in court, reports said, adding that the court was scheduled to hear the matter next on January 29.
Son 'Reminded' Suchana Of Estranged Husband: Suchana Seth reportedly told her friends and family members that her son reminded her of her husband, Venkat Raman, and of their estranged relationship.
Raman had called up Suchana and had told her he wanted to meet their son, an indiatoday.in report said, adding that while Raman asked her to bring their son to his house in Bengaluru, she asked him to meet her at a public place in the city.
To her request, Raman waited for Suchana at a public place in Bengaluru for more than two hours and called her up several times but could not reach her. She also allegedly did not respond to his messages and emails. Subsequently, Raman travelled to Indonesia for work, the report said.
Later, it was revealed that Suchana was in Goa when she spoke to her husband about meeting the child.