New Delhi | An occult practitioner has been arrested for allegedly killing three people here by feeding them poison-laced "ladoos" in the name of performing a ritual promising 'dhanvarsha', a windfall, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Kamruddin alias Baba, a resident of Firozabad in Uttar Pradesh, was operating a so-called tantric centre in Loni and Firozabad and was wanted in two different murder cases registered in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
"He was apprehended following a detailed technical and field investigation. He was involved in a well-planned conspiracy to eliminate the victims and rob them of cash and valuables," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer) Sachin Sharma said.
The officer said Kamruddin lured his targets by promising them a windfall gain through 'tantric' rituals. After gaining their confidence, he allegedly administered to them poison mixed in ladoos and made them have liquor and soft drinks before fleeing with their money once they fell unconscious.
"The case came to light on February 8 when a PCR call was received at Paschim Vihar East Police Station regarding three people, including a woman lying unconscious inside a car," the officer said.
A police team rushed to the spot and found an elderly man, aged around 76, seated in the driver's seat, a 42-year-old man who had been taken out of the vehicle by passersby, and a woman, around 40, lying inside the car.
"All three were shifted to Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital, where doctors declared them brought dead. During inspection of the vehicle, police recovered liquor bottles, cold drink bottles, empty glasses, mobile phones, cash, helmets, jackets, Aadhaar cards and other personal belongings and documents," Sharma said.
The three were identified as Randhir (76), a resident of Baprola, Shiv Naresh (42), a property dealer from Nagli Dairy, and Laxmi (40), a resident of Jahangirpuri, he said.
Family members of the deceased ruled out suicide and expressed suspicion over the circumstances of their deaths, prompting police to initiate an investigation.
The police said technical surveillance and call detail record analysis revealed that all three were in contact with Kamruddin in the days leading up to the incident and had visited Loni in Ghaziabad – first on the day before the incident, and then again on the day they were found dead.
The police found that one more person was in the car when the three were returning to Delhi.
"Further analysis established that the person was Kamruddin, who had boarded the vehicle in Loni and later abandoned it at the place where it was found," the officer said.
The DCP said Kamruddin, after he was apprehended, tried to mislead investigators but failed to provide satisfactory explanations about his movements.
Upon sustained questioning, he disclosed that around two months ago, Laxmi had been introduced to him through a person named Salim, a resident of Jahangirpuri. Laxmi subsequently introduced Shiv Naresh and Randhir to him.
The police said Kamruddin convinced the three victims to perform a special "pooja" for 'dhanvarsha' and instructed them to arrange Rs 2 lakh in cash along with liquor and cold drinks for the ritual.
On the day of the incident, he allegedly prepared poison-laced ladoos and accompanied the three in a car from Loni to Delhi. During the journey, he offered them liquor, cold drinks and the poisoned sweets as part of the "ritual." "As per his disclosure, after the victims consumed the poison-laced laddoos and drinks, they started feeling unwell and eventually lost consciousness. He then took away the cash and fled," the officer said.
The police said evidence corroborated Kamruddin's presence in the car at the relevant time. CCTV footage from the route, electronic surveillance and location data also supported the sequence of events reconstructed by the investigators.
The officer said Kamruddin is a habitual offender and has previously been involved in two murder cases of the same nature in Rajasthan and UP.
"He was earlier booked in 2014 under sections 143, 363 and 302 of the IPC at Raja Khera Police Station in Dholpur in Rajasthan. He was also named in another FIR in 2025 under sections 103(1) and 123 of the BNS at Makhkhanpur Police Station in Firozabad in UP," the officer added.
The police have registered a case at Paschim Vihar East Police Station. Further investigation is in progress to identify any possible accomplices.
