2 Assamese youth detained for Uzbek woman's murder

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Sheshadripuram police probing the mystery behind the death of a woman from Uzbekistan at a hotel here, detained two youths hailing from Assam on Friday.

The suspects were identified as Amrit and Robert, both from Assam, who had been working at the same hotel as room boys. According to the police, the youths were missing since Wednesday.

It was learnt that Zarina Djeparova, 27, had visited Bengaluru on March 5 on a tourist visa from Uzbekistan. She had, since then, been at a hotel in Sankey Road.

The woman was found dead around 10:30 pm on Wednesday in the hotel room when the suspecting staff used the master key to open the door.

"She had not ordered food and had not responded to our calls. Initially we thought she had gone out," the hotel manager said.

A senior police official from Sheshadripuram Police Station said that the two suspects had entered Zarina's room for a cleaning when they found cash and an expensive phone that she was using.

"Prima facie it seems that the suspects had planned to steal the cash. But as the woman proceeded to inform the hotel management, the suspects used a pillow to smother her to death and led from the hotel without arousing suspicion of the staff," the official said.