Bengaluru CEO killed son by smothering him: Post-mortem report
Mindful AI Lab CEO Suchana Seth smothered her four-year-old son to death during a vacation in Goa, post-mortem reports have revealed. She was arrested from Chitradurga in Karnataka on Monday. Dr. Kumar Naik, who conducted the post-mortem, revealed that the child was strangled with a cloth or pillow and had been dead for over 36 hours. A senior police officer in Goa stated that a pillow from the service apartment where the murder took place was used in the crime.
Doctors conclude that the child was killed using pillow
The child's post-mortem was conducted in the Hiriyur Taluk Hospital, where Dr. Naik said, "He [the child] was strangled to death or what we call smothering." "Either a cloth or a pillow was used. The child died due to strangulation," he said. He added that the nose and mouth of the child were bleeding. The doctor further revealed that there were no signs of struggle by the child, mainly due to pressure, Times Now reported.
Seth might have killed son over visitation rights
Meanwhile, another senior Goa cop told ANI that Seth might have killed her son because she was upset over a court order granting her soon-to-be ex-husband Venkat Raman visitation rights to meet their son every Sunday. The couple had been estranged since last year and was in the last stages of a divorce proceeding. The couple married in 2010. On Tuesday, Raman returned to India from Jakarta to give consent for the post-mortem after learning about his child's death.
Seth tried to die by suicide
The Indian Express reported that Seth attempted suicide by cutting her wrists with scissors after the murder. Blood samples have been collected for DNA testing to confirm this claim. Seth is a renowned AI ethics expert and data scientist with 12+ years of experience; she also featured on the "100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics List." She has now been booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 302 (murder) and 201 (destruction of evidence), as well as the Goa Children's Act.
Here's how the crime was discovered
The crime was discovered when housekeeping staff of her rented service apartment in Goa's Candolim found blood-stained towels after Seth checked out. Upon being interrogated by cops on a call, she said the stains were from her monthly periods. She also narrated a fake story that her son was with her friend in Margao in South Goa. However, the police subsequently found that she gave a fake address. She checked into the apartment on Saturday and left on Monday morning.
Police discover son's body in bag
Seth insisted on taking a cab to Bengaluru, despite hotel staffers suggesting she take a flight. While she was traveling back to Karnataka, cops contacted the taxi driver and spoke with Seth. The police then spoke to the driver in Konkani, making sure Seth did not understand. They instructed him to drive to the nearest police station. He covertly diverted the cab to Chitradurga's Aimangala Police Station. Seth was arrested there, and her son's body was found in a bag.
