Mangaluru court sentences man to life for double

The second Additional District and Sessions court, Mangaluru, on Monday, sentenced 52-year-old Alphonse Saldanha to life and imposed a fine of ₹2 lakh on finding him guilty of murdering Vincey alias Vincent D’souza and his wife Helen D’souza in Elinje Village of Mangaluru taluk in April 2020.

The Judge V.N. Jagadeesh also sentenced him to one year and imposed a fine of ₹4,500 for the offence under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). He was further sentenced to one month and imposed a fine of ₹500 for the offence under Section 341 (wrongful restraint) of the IPC. All sentences will run concurrently.

The Judge said on realisation of the total fine of ₹2.05 lakh, a sum of ₹ 1 lakh should be released as compensation to the children of the deceased couple. The remaining ₹5,000 should be remitted to the State. The Judge further directed his office to send a copy of the judgment to the Chairman of the District Legal Services Authority for awarding compensation to the children of the deceased under the Victim Compensation Scheme.

As per the chargesheet, Saldanha had a dispute with D’Souza over branches of a tree, in the former’s area, falling over the roof of the latter’s house. There was a heated exchange between the two in Saldanha’s house, and he stabbed D’Souza, who died on the spot, on April 29, 2020. Saldanha also stabbed D’souza’s wife, Helen, when she tried to save her husband. Mulky Inspector Jayaram D. Gowda filed a chargesheet against Saldanha, accusing him of offences under Sections 302, 341, 504, and 506 of the IPC.

Prosecutor Judith O. M. Crasta examined 24 witnesses and produced 46 documents. The judge convicted Saldanha for offences punishable under Sections 302, 506, and 341 of the IPC.