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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Murder |
Sentence: |
Life Imprisonment |
Years Imprisoned: |
3.92 |
Year Crime: |
2008 |
Year Convicted: |
2013 |
Year Cleared: |
2017 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
India |
County or Region of Crime: |
Karnataka |
City of Crime: |
Bangalore |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated Released |
Summary of Case: |
"Nupur Talwar and Rajesh Talwar were the married codefendants wrongly convicted in November 2013 the murder of their daughter Aarushi Talwar, and domestic male help Hemraj on the night of May 15-16, 2008 in the Jal Vayu Vihar section of Bangalore, India. Rajesh and Nupur were dentists. The body of 13-year-old Aarushi was found on May 16 in her bedroom, and the body of 45-year-old Hemraj was found two days later on a terrace of the apartment. Their prosecution's were based on circumstantial evidence only. No physical, forensic evidence, eyewitness or confession evidence linked them to the crimes. The Talwar's were excluded as the source of DNA evidence recovered from a crime scene beer bottle that also matched a “cotton thread seized from the right side of the door of the terrace” and “bloodstained palm print extracted from the outer wall of the terrace.” The Talwar's blood type was also different than the "AB" blood found on Hemraj's bed sheet, pillow and pillow cover. The prosecution speculated the Talwar's committed the murders as a result of the "grave and sudden provocation" of finding Hemraj in a compromising position with their daughter in her bedroom -- although there was no evidence presented during the trial supporting the prosecution's speculative motive. The prosecution also speculated that the front door was locked from the inside, to argue the Talwar's committed the crime. The Talwar's defense was they didn't commit the murders. After their convictions by Ghaziabad’s special CBI Court, they were sentenced to life in prison. They were immediately taken into custody and confined in the Dasna Jail. They appealed their convictions. On October 12, 2017 the Allahabad High Court set-aside the convictions of Rajesh Talwar and Nupur Talwar and ordered their acquittal on the basis the prosecution introduced insufficient evidence of their guilt. In its ruling the court rejected the prosecution's "chain of circumstances", including the unproven assertion that the door had been locked form the inside -- which suggests a “strong possibility of outsiders having accessed” the residence. The Talwar's were released four days later, on October 16, 2017, after the jail authorities received the Court's Order. They had been confined at the Dasna Jail for 3 years and 11 months. While imprisoned Rajesh and Nupur Talwar treated the dental needs of fellow inmates, and when they were released they refused remuneration of Rs 98,000 from the government for that work. After their release the Talwars told reporters that they wanted to visit the Dasna Jail once a week to treat the dental needs of inmates." |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On October 12, 2017 the Allahabad High Court set-aside the convictions of Rajesh Talwar and Nupur Talwar and ordered their acquittal on the basis the prosecution introduced insufficient evidence of their guilt." |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Female |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Indian |
Information Source 1: |
"Freed after 4 years, Talwars return to Noida complex where Aarushi was killed, By Express News Service, The Indian Express, October 17, 2017" |
Information Location 1: |
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/freed-after-4-years-rajesh-talwar-nupur-talwar-return-to-noida-complex-where-aarushi-was-killed-hemraj-allahabad-high-court-4894028/ |
Information Source 2: |
"Aarushi Talwar murder case: Key evidences that caught attention, By Aniruddha Ghosal and Kaunain Sheriff M, The Indian Express, October 22, 2017" |
Information Location 2: |
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/aarushi-talwar-murder-case-rajesh-nupur-talwar-hemraj-noida-cbi-key-evidences-that-night-at-flat-l-32-4900539/ |
Information Source 3: |
"From tutored witness to motive, Allahabad HC has many questions for CBI in Aarushi-Hemraj murder case, By Aniruddha Ghosal and Sarah Hafeez ( New Delhi / Allahabad), The Indian Express, October 13, 2017" |
Information Location 3: |
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/aarushi-hemraj-murder-case-2008-allahabad-high-court-has-many-questions-for-cbi-from-tutored-witness-to-motive/ |
Information Source 4: |
xx |
Information Location 4: |
http://www.firstpost.com/india/aarushi-hemraj-murder-case-servants-wife-moves-sc-against-acquittal-of-rajesh-nupur-talwar-4260357.html |
Information Source 5: |
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Information Location 5: |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org