Five arrested in palamu for killing woman by pretending to be a witch

Medininagar: Five persons have been arrested by police in connection with the murder of a woman in Jharkhand''s Palamu district, a senior police officer said.

Palamu Superintendent of Police Chandan Kumar Sinha said on Thursday that 40-year-old Surajmani Devi was murdered by a group of people at Godarmakala village under Rehla police station on Wednesday.

A case was lodged against eight accused persons based on the statement given by the woman''s five-year-old son Alok, the police said.

Of the eight accused named in the FIR, police arrested five on Thursday, the SP said.

Police said that the woman''s brother-in-law Amresh Rajwar was also involved in the crime and was also arrested on Thursday.

The police said the accused caught hold of the woman on Wednesday accusing her to be a witch and murdered her with an axe.

The five arrested persons were produced before a court that remanded them to 14-days judicial custody.

The SP said that raids were on to arrest the three remaining accused.