Suchana Seth, the CEO of a tech start-up based in Bengaluru, has been arrested for allegedly killing her four-year-old son at a Goa hotel. She had booked the room from January 6 to January 10 but left earlier, as informed by the police.
On January 7, at 9:10 pm, Seth told the service apartments staff at Hotel Sol Banyan Grande in North Goa’s Candolim that she needed to check out urgently for “work in Bengaluru” and asked for a taxi. She departed at 12:30 am, according to the FIR. Seth was apprehended in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district while reportedly attempting to escape in a cab with her son’s body concealed in a bag. A truck mishap at Chorla Ghat, on the Goa-Karnataka border, unintentionally delayed her escape for over four hours, from 2 am to 6 am.
The police officer stated, “The journey from Candolim to Bengaluru takes about 11-12 hours. Due to a truck overturning at Chorla Ghat, traffic was restricted, causing a delay. During this time, the hotel staff reported finding bloodstains, allowing us to trace the taxi driver and the accused.”
Seth had messaged her estranged husband on January 6, informing him about their son’s visitation on Sunday, as per a recent court order. However, when he received no response, he left for Jakarta the next day for business. While in Goa, Seth stayed in the hotel, ordering coffee and food online on January 7. The police will review the footage from the hotel’s single operational CCTV camera as part of their investigation.
Police sources revealed that Suchana Seth had messaged her estranged husband on Saturday (January 6), inviting him to meet their son on Sunday in Bengaluru, following a recent court order amid their ongoing divorce and custody proceedings. Her husband, Venkatraman PR, who runs an AI firm, was in Bengaluru at the time. However, as he received no response regarding the planned visitation on Sunday, he departed for Jakarta the next day for business purposes, according to an officer.
During her stay in Goa, Seth reportedly confined herself to the service apartment. On January 7, she ordered coffee and food through an online food aggregator. The police mentioned that only one CCTV camera was operational at the hotel, and its footage will be scrutinized as part of the investigation.
Seth’s mother is no longer alive, and her father resides in Kolkata. As part of the standard procedure, the police conducted a forensic medical examination of the accused on Wednesday. An officer stated, “She was a frequent visitor to Goa, and had also visited last month,” highlighting Seth’s history of visiting the location.
