Asif Muhammad was only a 19-year-old teenager, when he allegedly killed four of his family members, and dumped their bodies inside a trench at their home in the West Bengal’s Malda district, India.
Asif was arrested after the allegation, as soon as his brother, Arif Muhammad, reported the case to the police.
It is said that Asif murdered his father Jawad Ali, grandmother Alekjan Khatun, mother Ira Bibi and sister Arifa Khatun, using information he found on the dark web.
Initially, the police suspected that Asif did what he did because of mental exhaustion. The dark web was first referred to by a number of people who have close contacts with the family, blaming Asif for his involvement in some "dark web" activities.
The police is also convinced that Asif might have found the information to use type of heavy dose sedatives to make his family members unconscious, and the procedures of human body preservation, from information gathered from the web.
"He may have learned ways of body preservation from the dark web," said the police, who suggested that Asif might have been brainwashed while engaging with people involved in the dark web.
It is said that Asif had allegedly mixed a strong tranquillizer with cold drinks on February 28, and gave the drinks to four of his family members.
When they fell unconscious, he tied them and taped leucoplast on their mouths to choke them. After that, he drowned them by putting them all inside a water tank at the house.
He then allegedly dug a trench on the premises of the house to bury them there.
But to move the body from the house to the trench, which is located inside a warehouse, Asif dug a 12-foot tunnel. This in order to prevent neighbors from knowing. The bodies were removed from the house to the warehouse through that tunnel.
After all the bodies have been moved and buried, Asif destroyed the hole to destroy the evidence.
And when neighbors asked, the 19-year-old online gamer told them that “everyone’s in Calcutta”.
His elder brother Arif said an attempt had also been made on his life, but none was attempted successfully because the murder was discovered too soon and Arif managed to flee.
The police found the materials used for building a coffin were kept in Asif’s friends’ home in Malda.
“Asif insisted they keep the materials for the coffin like plywood and marble as he told them the family was soon shifting base from Gurutola village to Calcutta,” police said.
Asif is known to many as a dropped out student after Class 11.
He then asked his family's permission, saying that he wanted to develop an app to help him earn money in his future. With his family's permission, he bought a number of things to help him create the apps.
But upon investigation, the police found more than things needed to develop mobile apps.
For example, the police said that they've found a number of strange videos on Asif's personal laptop.
And besides the laptop, Asif also owns a number of mobile phones, a sound system, TV, CCTV and many sophisticated gadgets.
The police also found that Asif has made transactions involving cryptocurrencies.
"It is clear Asif was interested in the dark net. Tracking his online activities would give us an insight into his plans,” investigators said.
The bodies were recovered after being buried for four months. None of the bodies were emitting stench or decomposed.
It is said that it all began when Asif reportedly forced his father to sell some property, including a the family's four-wheeler and a dumper. After further investigation, it is said that Asif wanted his family's wealth to himself.
It was Asif's grandfather who first found this out.
As he gives the news to one of his uncles, the uncle tells Asif that selling the property is not possible without the signature of his father who owns the property.
“(But) he is changing his version every minute. He shows no signs of remorse,” the police said.
“He told his family that once they transfer the entire property in his name, he would send them to a location where they can live peacefully,” the police added.
And his attempt involved two of his friends: Sabir Ali and Mohammad Mahfuz.
The police have seized from them five 7mm pistols, 84 bullets and 10 magazines, which apparently belonged to Asif.
The two purportedly told the investigators that Asif had asked them to keep the cache of arms and ammunition.
“The arrested duo have confessed that Asif had asked them to keep the arms and ammunition safely,” said the police
Asif gave the weapons to his friends, a day before his brother Arif reported the murders to the police.
When the case was first reported, the police also suspected Arif, because of the four mouths it took him before reporting the case.
