Bengaluru: Man arrested for killing childhood friend over woman

Bengaluru: A 24-year-old man was arrested by the Sanjaynagar police for allegedly killing his childhood friend by hitting him with a hollow brick.

The deceased has been  Varun Kotian (24) and the accused is Divesh Hegde (24), hailing from Kidiyoor, Udupi.

Divesh who was on the run after murdering his friend Varun Kotyan on the morning of September 21, was arrested near Soundarya Park in Sanjaynagar.

Case details:

Divesh, Varun, and the woman were childhood friends from Udupi and had been living together in a rented house in Geddalahalli, Bengaluru, for the past year. The woman worked as a receptionist at a hotel, Divesh was employed with Zomato, and Varun worked as a safety officer at a company in Bagalur. A few months ago, the woman moved to a paying guest (PG) accommodation near MG Road.

Divesh had developed romantic feelings for his childhood friend over the last two months but had never expressed them to her. However, he noticed Varun spending more time with her and indirectly conveying his feelings. This led to tension between Divesh and Varun, resulting in arguments.

Divesh even accused Varun of already being in a relationship with another woman while still being overly friendly with their mutual friend. On one occasion, their roommates had to step in to resolve a dispute between the two.

On September 20, the trio had gone to a pub in Koramangala to celebrate Varun’s birthday. That night, Divesh confessed his love to the woman, but she did not take it seriously and told him they could discuss it later. After the party, the three returned home, and the woman went to her PG.

The next morning, around 8 a.m. on September 21, Divesh and Varun got into a heated argument about the woman. Their fight spilled outside onto the pavement, where it turned violent. Divesh attacked Varun, causing him to fall to the ground, before using a nearby hollow brick to fatally strike him, according to the police.