In Delhi, India, Sushmita allegedly conspired with her cousin-in-law and lover, Rahul Dev, to murder her husband, Karan Dev. On July 14, 2024, Sushmita ground approximately 15 sleeping pills into her husband's dinner (dal and roti). When the sedatives failed to kill him, Sushmita communicated with Rahul Dev via Instagram live chat, and he advised her to electrocute him using a severed extension cord taped to his shoulder. Sushmita executed the electrocution, killing Karan Dev, and subsequently staged his death as a natural medical event. Suspicions arose during the post-mortem discussions when Sushmita, Rahul, and Rahul's father opposed an autopsy. Following the funeral, Karan's brother, Kunal, discovered unlocked Instagram chats between Sushmita and Rahul on a phone left in the bathroom, revealing the murder plan and execution details. The family recorded the evidence, confronted Sushmita, and reported the crime to the police.
Country: India
State/Province: Delhi, India
City/Region: Delhi
Incident Type: Domestic Violence Homicide
Relationship Status: Married
Relationship Duration: Approximately 11 years (marriage)
Incident Date: July 14, 2024
Relationship Origins:
Relationship Stages:
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Red Flags:
Motives:
Relationship Outcomes:
How the relationship or connection began.
Approximately 11 years (marriage)
Important relationship phases recorded for this case.
Reported red flags or early concern points.
Contributing factors and possible motives from the available sources.
2024-07-14
Recorded relationship or case outcome.
English labels are shown first. Original-language titles are preserved for source verification.
Crime Tak - India
Infidelity
The incident reflects a calculated spousal murder driven by an extramarital affair and financial greed. Rather than seeking a legal divorce, which would forfeit claims to her husband's financial assets and apartment, the perpetrator conspired with her lover to murder her spouse and retain his property while framing the homicide as a natural death.
The police initially encountered a scene staged as a natural death with minimal physical signs beyond foam at the mouth and minor shoulder burns. Despite opposition from the suspect and accomplices, an autopsy was ordered. The case unravelled when the victim's family discovered unencrypted Instagram chat logs detailing the plot and recorded the evidence before presenting it to law enforcement.
Initially, the death was portrayed by the wife as a sudden natural medical event or sleep-related death. Opposition to an autopsy by the suspect, her lover, and her lover's father briefly created resistance, but police insistence on a post-mortem combined with family discovery of digital evidence dispelled confusion.
Sushmita administered ground sleeping pills in Karan Dev's dinner on July 14, 2024. When the pills failed to cause death, she messaged Rahul Dev on Instagram, who advised her to use a cut extension wire connected to a live wall outlet. Sushmita taped the live wire to her husband's shoulder, causing fatal electrocution, and then staged the scene as a natural death until chat logs were discovered by family members after the funeral.
The case involved severe behavioral risk indicators including secret extradyadic relationships, real-time remote co-offender instruction via electronic messaging, chemical poisoning attempts, lethal physical intervention, and immediate post-incident emotional manipulation and staging.
Digital footprints and unencrypted messaging channels often serve as primary forensic evidence in planned domestic crimes. Family vigilance in insisting on post-mortem examinations and preserving electronic evidence proved decisive in uncovering the murder.
Sushmita's frequent private meetings with her cousin-in-law Rahul Dev and shifting schedule alignment were early indicators of an extramarital relationship.
The critical clue was an unlocked mobile phone left in a shared bathroom after the funeral showing active Instagram chat logs between Sushmita and Rahul Dev.
The strongest evidence types include saved Instagram live chat logs detailing step-by-step murder instructions, physical burn marks on the victim's shoulder from electrocution, and autopsy findings.
The victim's family stated that Sushmita rushed to them in the morning claiming Karan was unresponsive. During the family confrontation recorded on video, Sushmita alleged she had been a victim of domestic violence, though family members pointed out her financial motives and lack of prior complaints.
Follow-up discovery of ninety Instagram chats shifted the case from a suspected natural death or unexplained cardiac event to a premeditated homicidal conspiracy involving poisoning and electrocution.
The precise forensic autopsy results regarding the chemical toxicity levels of the sedatives and formal judicial sentencing outcomes for both suspects remain unstated in the source transcript.