Jun 13, 2024
Popular Kannada star Darshan Thoogudeepa was arrested along with 10 accomplices and girlfriend Pavithra Gowda for the murder of Renuka Swamy, a 33-year-old youth from Chitradurga. Renuka was an ardent fan of the ‘Majestic’ star and sent lewd messages to Gowda, as he thought she was the reason behind the rift between Darshan and his wife Vijayalakshmi. Darshan paid Rs 30 lakh to the gang to murder and dispose of Renuka’s body. However, Darshan is far from the first celeb who got arrested for homicide. There have been many celebrities who went behind bars for cold-blooded murder!
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In 2023, television actor Bhupinder Singh was charged with murder, after shooting a man and injuring three others during a dispute in Bijnor. Singh and his associates fired over 10 rounds from both licensed and illegal weapons at four family members, killing a 23-year-old named Govind. Three others from the same family—his father Gurdeep Singh, mother Meera Bai, and elder brother Amreek Singh—were seriously injured. The squabble broke out as the actor had allegedly cut five eucalyptus trees from Gurdeep’s farm.
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Meenakshi Thapa, a Bollywood starlet, was murdered by two of her actor friends whom she met on the sets of Madhur Bhandarkar’s movie ‘Heroine’. Amit Jaiswal and his girlfriend Preeti Surin, kidnapped Thapa for ransom, murdered and beheaded her. Thapa's mother reportedly paid Rs60,000 (Dh4,167) for her daughter's release, but she never saw her again. Detectives believe Thapa was strangled in a hotel, dismembered, and her remains disposed of in a water tank. In a final act of extreme cruelty, her head was thrown from a moving bus.
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In 2017, 22-year-old Kannada actress Shruthi Chandralekha was arrested by the Bengaluru police for murdering her husband Ronald Peter Prinzo. With the assistance of two accomplices, Shruthi poisoned his food and while he was unconscious, he was strangled to death. During interrogation, she revealed that her husband forced her to act in adult films.
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In 1993, actor-rapper Snoop Dogg and his bodyguard faced murder charges for killing Philip Woldemariam, a member of a rival gang. Snoop's bodyguard was quickly acquitted, as his shooting of Woldemariam was deemed self-defense. However, Snoop remained entangled in the legal proceedings until his acquittal in 1996.
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Actor Ryan Grantham, best known for the Archies comic adaptation 'Riverdale,' received a life sentence for murdering his mother. In 2020, Grantham shot his 64-year-old mother, Barbara Waite, in the back of the head and then promptly turned himself into the police. According to Deadline, the Supreme Court in Vancouver imposed the mandatory sentence for second-degree murder, which requires at least 14 years before he becomes eligible for parole.
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Rapper Cassidy faced charges of murder, attempted murder, reckless endangerment, aggravated assault, conspiracy, and weapons possession following a 2005 incident where he and two associates shot at three unarmed men. Ultimately, he was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and received a prison sentence ranging from 11 to 23 months.
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Former 'Law & Order' actor Isaiah Stokes was jailed at Rikers Island on charges related to the 2021 murder of Tyrone Jones. Stokes allegedly approached Jones' Jeep and fired 11 shots, hitting him several times in the face and head. Surveillance footage showed Stokes walking past the driver's side window of the Jeep, then returning to shoot his victim and flee. Stokes has reportedly denied the charges, claiming he had 'no idea' who Jones was.
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Drummer Jim Gordon, co-writer of ‘Layla’ with Eric Clapton, tragically killed his mother in June 1983. He received a life sentence and is currently in prison, where he undergoes counseling and takes medication. In April 2013, his parole request was rejected, with authorities stating that he would pose a danger to society if released.
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