3 years after TV executive Neeraj Grover was brutally murdered, a Mumbai court found Kannada actress Maria Susairaj guilty of destroying evidence while her fiance naval officer Emile Jerome Mathew was convicted for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Maria Susairaj, once a Kannada actress, was found at her Mumbai home in May, 2008 with Neeraj Grover, a young TV producer. Maria was at that time engaged to naval officer Emile Jerome Mathew. On the night of May 6, Jerome called Maria and heard a man's voice in the background. He flew from the Kochi naval base to Mumbai early morning on May 7 and arrived at Maria's flat between 7 and 7.30am.
Consumed by jealousy, Jerome, as he is known, killed Neeraj using a knife from Maria's kitchen. The actor says he then raped her. Later, Jerome sent Maria to a nearby mall to buy bags, air fresheners, and a knife.
Neeraj had moved to Mumbai from Kanpur, where he had completed a course in Mass Communications. Before the night he was killed, he had never met Jerome. He used to see Maria often.
Maria's lawyers say Jerome threatened her into assisting him get rid of Neeraj's body. The producer was chopped into small pieces with the knife Maria returned home with. Bags packed with parts of his corpse were taken by the couple in a friend's car to another suburb where they were set on fire.
On May 8, Neeraj's father, Amarnath Grover, arrived in Mumbai and filed a complaint with the police that his son was missing. 2 weeks later, the police arrested Jerome and Maria. The actor allegedly confessed to the crime and also led the cops to Neeraj's body. A gold chain and locket helped Neeraj's parents identify his remains.
Maria was found guilty of destruction of evidence and sentenced to three years in prison. The time she has already spent in prison is adjusted against this sentence. So, she has now been released from jail.
Jerome has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The judge in a Mumbai court said Jerome had not planned Neeraj's murder and that “Obviously any fiancé who finds another man with his fiancée will get upset and lose control.” His lawyer says Jerome wants to serve his country by returning to duty when he finishes his sentence.
The story of Neeraj Grover's murder is being made into a film by director Ram Gopal Verma. Today, he tweeted: Now that she has been released I want to sign Maria Susairaj for a film.
