Ramanagara: A partially decomposed body of 45-year-old woman, Saraswati, was recovered from her residence at the Vijayanagara Layout here on May 28.

The neighbours grew suspicious as there was a foul odour emanating from the house of the victim on Monday morning. The police who arrived at the spot broke the lock on the front door to enter the house. The prima facie evidence suggests she was bound with a towel and choked by her murderers about 4 to 5 days ago. The remains have been shifted to Rajarajeswari Medical College and Hospital for autopsy.

Motive behind the murder is still unclear. It has come to light that the victim was separated from her husband and was living alone in her house. Six months ago she had also forbidden her son from seeing her after a quarrel, said the sources close to the family. As she was living alone, the crime did not come to light.

Circumstantial evidences show that she might have been killed by persons known to her, said the police. After the murder the culprits locked the house and the entrance gate to hide their crime. Only after a through investigation and study of the autopsy report the exact cause of death could be ascertained.

DySP M K Thimmaya and Circle Inspector Ramesh, PSI Lakshman Gowda and fignerprint experts inspected the spot for clues. A case is registered in the Ramanagara Town Police Station.