Wife suspects affair, luxury hotel manager drowns her in Goa

MARGAO: The 29-year-old manager of a luxury hotel in south Goa was arrested Saturday for allegedly

drowning

his 27-year-old wife at

Cabo de Rama beach

, Canacona, after she confronted him over suspicions about his

extramarital affair

.
The accused Gaurav Katiyar, a Lucknow native, worked as a manager at Courtyard by Marriott at Colva. He and the victim, Diksha Gangawar, had wed more than a year ago but their relationship had been strained, police said.

A month back, Gaurav had moved to Goa from Chennai where he had been employed with Park Hyatt. Diksha, who was in Lucknow, came to Goa after Gaurav moved, sources said. During her stay, her suspicion about Gaurav's alleged extramarital affair grew stronger, resulting in frequent arguments between the two.

On Friday, Gaurav took Diksha to Cabo de Rama beach on a hired two-wheeler. The couple spent some time on the rocks on the beach before venturing into the waters.

"Some tourists who were taking photos at the beach had seen the couple descending into the waters. They, however, grew suspicious when they saw the man walking back alone after a while with the woman nowhere in sight," said Deputy SP Santosh Dessai. The tourists called police when they saw the body of the woman floating in the waters.

After his arrest, Gaurav tried to pass off his wife's death as accidental drowning. He, however, confessed to having murdered her when police challenged his version with evidentiary details. "Besides, the body had strangulation marks and other injuries, which indicated that the couple had a scuffle before she died," Deputy SP Dessai added.

Police sources said Gaurav has not been cooperating in the investigation. His mobile call details are being checked to unearth the circumstances that led to the

murder

. Cuncolim Police produced him before the local court on Saturday which remanded him in five-day police custody. The postmortem will be conducted once Diksha's family arrives in Goa, cops said.