- Rajkumar Rajbhar staged his death using AI and a goat to evade a murder trial in Uttar Pradesh
- A death certificate for him was submitted to the court
- Rajbhar was accused in a 2016 murder, but had been living freely for 18 months after the fake funeral
Artificial intelligence supplied the superimposed face, and a goat supplied the torso under a shroud, for a man in Uttar Pradesh to stage his own death to get away with murder, almost. After arresting Rajkumar Rajbhar on Sunday, police said he had already got documents filed in court stating that he was no longer alive to stand trial.
Rajbhar was on trial for the 2016 killing of Yogesh Singh, but then secured a death certificate from the Mau Municipal Council that was submitted in court, and had been living free for nearly a year and a half when the Kotwali Nagar police, assisted by the Special Operations Group (SOG) and the surveillance team, arrested him near Khwajajahanpur locality, where he lives, around 9 am on Sunday, October 25. Rajbhar, 38, was on bail in the case of a man's murder by gunfire.
Police said that while the trial was underway, Rajbhar concocted a story about his death and got forged documents submitted to the court to escape legal proceedings.
The AI-generated image of a funeral that was submitted to the authorities. Photo: Police Handout/NDTV
Yogesh Singh was shot dead near the Munshipura railway line on December 19, 2016. The murder case was registered against Rajkumar Rajbhar and his friend Sudarshan Rajbhar on a complaint filed by the victim's nephew, Avinash Singh.
Rajkumar Rajbhar hatched his AI-assisted plan to stage his death in Ghazipur on May 30, 2025. An AI-generated image of a body lying on a funeral pyre at a cremation ground was used, and a goat was cremated in place of a body. Photographs of a funeral procession and the last rites were also allegedly arranged to make the death appear genuine, police said. Based on these documents, a death certificate was issued.
Additional Superintendent of Police Anoop Kumar said Rajkumar Rajbhar, who had failed to clear his Class 12 examination, worked as a stock market trader. He had collected money from prominent people in several cities, claiming he would invest it in the market. Police allege he plotted his death both to escape legal action in the murder case and to avoid returning that money.
A separate case of forgery has been registered against him, while he faces the murder trial now that he is no longer "dead".
(with inputs by Rahul)
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