Chitrakoot: In a shocking case of insurance fraud and murder, a man from Uttar Pradesh's Chitrakoot district who faked his own death to escape a Rs 45 lakh loan and claim Rs 2 crore in insurance money was found alive at his brother-in-law’s house in Rewa.
The man had killed his friend by burning him alive inside a car and spread the news of his own death. Police have arrested both the man and his wife, who was an accomplice in the crime.
Superintendent of Police, Chitrakoot, Arun Kumar Singh said that the charred body of an unidentified man was recovered from a burnt car on the night of June 29–30 near Sikri Aman village in Rajapur police station area, Chitrakoot. On Monday, acting on a tip-off, a team of the Special Operations Group (SOG) and Rajapur police raided a house in Anandpur village of Rewa district and found Sunil Singh Patel alive, along with his wife Hema Singh.
Patel, a resident of Kanpura village in Jawa police station area of Rewa, had faked his death with a meticulously crafted plan, which he allegedly learned by watching crime videos on YouTube. The couple confessed during police interrogation that they were unable to repay a Rs 45 lakh loan taken for a beauty parlour and the purchase of a harvester. Having already paid a few instalments, they feared defaulting on the rest. Sunil had also taken a life insurance policy worth Rs 2 crore.
The Murder Plot
To carry out the plan, Sunil searched for a man of similar build and found 30-year-old Vinay Chauhan, a drug addict from Kanpura village. He befriended him on June 28 at a local liquor den and invited him for drinks again on June 29.
Initially, Sunil intended to murder Vinay near Shankargarh, but heavy rain forced him to change the location. He instead drove to a deserted area near Sikri village in Chitrakoot — a place known to his wife, who hails from nearby Kandhvania village.
That night, Sunil and Vinay drank heavily in the car. Once Vinay was unconscious, Sunil placed him in the front passenger seat, sealed all doors and windows, and opened a small gap in the window near Vinay. He then filled the car and Vinay's body with camphor, opened the pin of a gas cylinder inside the vehicle, and lit camphor from outside — throwing it in through the slightly open window.
The car exploded in flames, killing Vinay on the spot.
Sunil used the cover of darkness to escape and took a bus to Prayagraj. Meanwhile, his wife Hema publicly claimed that Sunil had died in the car accident and performed the last rites of the charred body, pretending it was her husband.
The Investigation Breakthrough
Despite the cremation, the police remained suspicious. Forensic inconsistencies and vague witness accounts led them to continue investigating. Surveillance of the couple's mobile phones and extensive review of CCTV footage along the Chitrakoot-Rewa route helped track Sunil to his brother-in-law’s house.
DNA samples of the victim were taken and matched with his brother Vikas Chauhan to confirm the identity of the deceased.
SP Arun Kumar Singh praised the efforts of the SOG and Rajapur police, announcing a reward of Rs 10,000 for the team. He said this was a rare and chilling case of premeditated murder driven by financial desperation and a disturbing misuse of online information.
Both Sunil Singh Patel and Hema Singh have been sent to jail, and further investigations are underway.
