Phone of Katihar Express murder victim leads police to ‘serial killer’

Howrah GRP and CID uncover inter-State links to 'serial killer' targeting handicapped and women passengers on moving trains.

The Howrah Government Railway Police (GRP) and the West Bengal Criminal Investigation Department (CID) have unearthed inter-State links to a ‘serial killer’, tracing the moving signal of the mobile phone of the handicapped passenger recently found dead on Katihar Express.

The accused, 30-year-old Rahul alias Bholu Karamveer Jat, is a resident of Haryana’s Rohtak district and was recently nabbed by Valsad Police in Gujarat, in connection with the alleged rape and murder of a 19-year-old college student. 

According to CID sources, during the investigation of the case, the accused confessed to committing multiple crimes across States like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Haryana, including the murder of the Katihar Express passenger. 

The body of the deceased passenger, identified as Soumitra Chatterjee, was found on November 19 on the upper berth of the handicapped compartment of the Katihar Express on its arrival at Howrah Station. 

The deceased’s body was covered in a blanket and had multiple stab injuries. His belongings, including his phone, were missing. 

Howrah GRP was investigating the case with assistance from the CID. 

The accused has reportedly been described by Gujarat Police as a “serial killer”, given his connections to multiple murder cases between October and November.