HC upholds life term to man in 2005 German woman murder case

The Bombay High Court has upheld the conviction and life sentence imposed on a 27-year-old man for murdering a 79-year-old German woman in 2005 in Pune's upmarket Koregaon Park.
A division bench headed by Acting Chief Justice V K Tahilramani while dismissing an appeal filed by Iqlak Fakir Mohammad Shaikh challenging the lower court's order convicting him, held that the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt the case against him.
The prosecution case was that the victim Dr Gudrun was seen last by her neighbours and friends on December 31, 2005.
On January 2, 2006 when the victim's maid went to her house nobody responded. On January 6 the neighbours used a spare key to enter the flat and found the victim's headless body.

According to the prosecution, a television and some silver items were missing from the victim's home. On the basis of a cheque of a bank account of Shaikh apparently dropped during a scuffle with the victim and found near her body, the police arrested him. The stolen things were recovered from him.
The HC after perusing the evidence and facts of the case observed that there is ample and conclusive evidence to prove the guilt of the convict beyond reasonable doubt.
"This is a case of brutal murder of an old German lady of 79 years, who was residing all alone in the flat. The case of the prosecution is based on the circumstantial evidence alone and at the outset itself, we are constrained to observe that the circumstances proved on record by the prosecution in the present case are so strong and forbidding, forming a chain so complete that no other inference but of the guilt of the appellant can be drawn from the proved circumstances on record," the court said.