The Mumbai Police has said Sushant Singh Rajput died by suicide in his posh Mumbai apartment on June 14.
New Delhi:
Investigating the Sushant Singh Rajput death case, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is set to write to the Mumbai Police for custody of the actor’s cellphone.
The probe agency, which was also allowed to probe Sushant Singh’s death after the Centre accepted Bihar government’s request for a “thorough investigation”, has said it wants to analyse the contents of the actor’s phone.
Sushant Singh’s cellphone will give CBI access to his WhatsApp messages, sources said, adding that they will also get to know if his phone has details of any financial dealings – currently under probe by the Enforcement Directorate.
Sources in the CBI added that information from the actor’s phone could potentially throw up information critical to the case and offer explanations about the circumstances surrounding Mr Singh’s death on June 14.
Besides the Mumbai Police and the CBI, the ED is investigating if money laundering played a role in Sushant Singh’s death. The ED is looking into the books of the Mr Singh’s actor girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her family.
Almost a month after Mr Singh’s death, which according to the Mumbai police was caused by asphyxiation due to hanging, his father filed a case against Rhea Chakraborty and her relatives, accusing them of cheating Mr Singh financially, mentally harassing him and driving him to suicide.
Ms Chakraborty, who has denied all charges, said the First Information Report (FIR) filed by the police in Bihar was completely illegal” but added that she has no objection if the Supreme Court transferred the case to the CBI.
Several conspiracy theories have spread about the circumstances of Sushant Singh’s death including the claim that the actor was murdered. Some have tried to link the case to the death by suicide of Sushant Singh’s former manager Disha Salian, who died a few days before him.
The opposition BJP and politicians from Bihar have targeted Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and his son Aaditya Thackeray, also a Maharashtra minister, saying there have been attempts to scuttle the probe.
