Goa: The Goa police, on Saturday, reportedly identified two men suspected to be behind the murder of famous perfumer Monika Ghurde, after they were captured in CCTV footage of an ATM in nearby Porvorim.
According to reports, the Goa police have also sent a special team to Bengaluru in an attempt to narrow down on the two individuals after it came to light that they withdrew money in Bengaluru using the same ATM card.
Following the leads, the police, on Saturday, sent a team of officials to neighbouring Karnataka to nab the accused.
Earlier on the day, post-mortem was also conducted in Goa Medical College and Hospital, which confirmed that she died of smothering.
"The post-mortem report has confirmed that she died due to smothering," Deputy Superintendent of Police Mahesh Gaonkar said.
He said the post-mortem report, however, is not clear on the suspicion of rape, which would be known only after the serological examination.
"The viscera has also been preserved and would be sent for forensic examination ... The post-mortem does not confirm or rule out rape. It is completely silent on that awaiting detailed forensic examination," Gaonkar said.
The 39-year-old photographer-turned perfumer was found dead in her rented flat in posh Sangolda village on October 6.
Police suspect that she was raped and murdered somewhere between October 5 afternoon and night, as she had not been in touch with anyone since that time.
The cops are ruling out robbery as nothing was missing from the flat raising suspicions that the killer might have been known to Monica.
Police revealed that Ghurde originally hailed from Nagpur and was married to a photographer Bharat Ramamrutam from Tamil Nadu and was residing at Porvorim near here before she separated from her husband and shifted to Sangolda this year.
the murder came to light when the maid who came around 9 AM on October 6 found that the door was locked.
When Monica did not open it despite repeated knocks she raised an alarm.
"The maid later informed Monica's brother (Anand, based in Mumbai) who in turn called her husband (Bharat) and then her neighbour, an American woman who had spare keys following which the door was opened and the body was found," police sources said.
The perfumer, who was a regular on Goa's social circuit is said to have met Ramamrutham in Mumbai while she was a photographer. She had done her photography course from Mumbai's JJ Institute of Applied Arts.
Subsequently, she moved to Chennai in 2009 to pursue her interest in perfumes, and later shifted to Goa in 2011. Monika had set up her perfume-making company Mo Lab, and was also researching perfumery.
She collaborated with eminent designers such as Jean Francois Lesage, Christian Louboutin and Anand Kabra.
