india

Updated: Dec 30, 2015 13:38 IST

A caretaker at a de-addiction centre in Bhubaneswar was murdered by a group of inmates after he resisted their rough attempts to go out and celebrate the new year.

The incident occurred at Prayas de-addiction centre on the outskirt of Bhubaneswar past midnight on Tuesday. Sumit Ranjan Behera, the 20-year-old caretaker and counsellor at the centre, was woken up by the group who demanded the keys to the gates. He was tied up, beaten mercilessly and finally strangled to death when he attempted to flee.

Another employee of the centre was also attacked and tied up, but not killed. He managed to free himself and inform the police after the group fled.

All 36 inmates at the centre had also run away after the incident. Police however were able to apprehend around 15 of them by evening, though the murder suspects remain at large.

“Around four inmates have been found to be behind the murder. The complicity of other inmates is being investigated,” Bhubaneswar deputy commissioner of police, Satyabrata Bhoi said.

Behera was apparently an amicable person who had a good rapport with the inmates. However, a group of 12 inmates who joined the centre recently, aged between 28 and 40, were against the caretaker for he was a strict disciplinarian, police said.