Udupi: In a significant development, Udupi Police successfully apprehended the suspect in the brutal Nejaru murder case in Kudachi, Belagavi on Tuesday.

The accused, identified as Praveen Chowgale (35) from Sangli District, Maharashtra, was reportedly trying to escape to Maharashtra or Andhra Pradesh.

His attempt was foiled when he switched on his mobile phone in Kudachi, allowing the Udupi Police to trace and arrest him. The accused, a security department employee at Mangaluru International Airport, is being transported back to Udupi from Belagavi.

The tragic incident occurred on Sunday morning, where Hasina (42) and her children Afnan (22), Aynaz (20), and Asim (12) were brutally stabbed to death, while Hasina’s mother-in-law, Hajira, survived by locking herself in the toilet.