A mystery surrounding the disappearance of a family has raised concern in Karnataka’s Davanagere district. A contractor and his wife and two young children, one for each, are missing after the parents found a note regarding financial problems in their home, police said.
The missing people are K.B. Ramesh Kumar (38), a resident of Banashankari Layout in Davanagere, his wife Jayasheela (36), son Hitesh (9) and daughter Prerana (3). According to initial information, the family has been untraceable for a number of days and fears for their safety are high.
The incident took place after Ramesh Kumar contacted his mother Lalitamma on August 14. He told her he and his wife and children were going to Bengaluru for a holiday. In the midst of this festivity and holiday period, the explanation did not raise any eyebrows among family.
But worry grew when repeated attempts to contact Ramesh Kumar over the next few days were unsuccessful. Family members had even contacted him several times, but his mobile phone remained switched off. As the lack of communication continued, Lalitamma was getting concerned and went to her son’s home in Davanagere.
When she got to the house, she used a spare key that she had and unlocked the door and went inside. What she found inside intensified her fears. Mobile phones belonging to the family were found inside the house, according to reports. In addition, a handwritten note was reported to have been recovered from the house.
The note said the family was in financial trouble and faced debt problems. It said they were considering ending their lives because of loans and mounting economic problems. The contents of the note are now very much part of the police investigation.
The family’s car and two-wheeler were also found parked in the house. And now investigators are looking into how and when the family might have left the house, as there were no immediate signs of their departure, and the family may have left the house but were not able to locate their destination. That the family’s phones and vehicles were left behind has raised many questions that remain unanswered.
Lalitamma, when she learned of the discovery, approached the authorities and filed a complaint regarding the disappearance of her son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren. Based on the complaint, police at Vidyanagar Police Station registered a missing persons case and launched a search operation.
Investigators are currently studying CCTV footage from nearby areas, listening to relatives and friends, and studying financial records to learn what caused the family’s disappearance. The note found in the house is also being verified, and details of the note are being verified.
At this point, police have not yet established whether the family has been injured. Police are treating this as a missing persons case, and public comment is being sought, they said.
The incident has shocked residents of the locality, and many are concerned that financial stress could have played a part in the family's disappearance. As the hunt continues, they are hopeful that their family will be found safe in the future and that the mystery of the sudden disappearance of the family will be solved.
