Model Shraddha Dubey, key accused in murder of Lucknow businessman, arrested in Nagpur

NAGPUR: Fashion model Shraddha Dubey, a key accused in the alleged murder of Shiva Sharma, the owner of a cafe in Lucknow, was arrested from Nagpur on Tuesday by a joint team of the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) and Lucknow police, officials said.

A local police officer said Dubey, on the run for 11 days, was hiding inside a flat located on Wardha Road in Nagpur city when she was traced and nabbed by the team at around at 3.30 pm.

The Nagpur police's Crime Branch assisted the Uttar Pradesh STF and Lucknow cops in tracking down and apprehending the 31-year-old model, he said.

Nagpur Crime Branch DCP Deepak Agrawal confirmed Dubey's arrest.

Cafe owner Sharma, 28, allegedly fell from the balcony of an apartment building on October 9 in the Balu Adda area of Hazratganj in the Uttar Pradesh capital. His partner Dubey, her sister and their driver are key accused in the case being probed as a suspected murder.

Dubey, the late businessman's alleged live-in partner, was on the run since the October 9 incident.

The Lucknow Police had announced a reward of Rs 25,000 each for information leading to the arrest of Dubey, her sister Rashmi and another accused, Tanvir Ali alias Danish. The reward was later increased to 50,000.

The case has drawn further attention after a video of an interview with Shraddha surfaced on Sunday.

In videos circulated on social media earlier, Dubey has denied involvement in Sharma's death and claimed that he died by suicide due to financial distress. She has alleged that Sharma was under a debt of Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh and had spoken about ending his life if he could not repay the money.

In her account of the events leading to the incident, Dubey claimed that on October 9, Sharma went into a bathroom at her residence and closed the door. She said she asked her sister to check on him, but before the door could be opened, Sharma jumped from the balcony.

Dubey has maintained that CCTV footage would establish what happened and denied allegations that Sharma was tortured or assaulted. She has also claimed that she handed over Sharma's phone to the police, saying it could help establish his communications with lenders.

The case was initially viewed as an accidental death after Sharma fell from an apartment in Lucknow. It turned into a murder investigation after his family alleged that he had been assaulted and tortured before being thrown from the building.

The Hazratganj police have booked Dubey, her sister Rashmi, their driver and two other people for murder.

Sharma's mother, Ranjana, has repeatedly demanded the arrest of the accused and questioned Dubey's claim that her son died by suicide, asking why she had not given this account to the police earlier.