New lead found in Indian woman's murder in Australia

Sydney, July 31
Police in Australia have released new CCTV footage which they hope may provide a lead in the murder of an Indian IT consultant earlier this year, a media report said on Friday.

Prabha Arun Kumar, 41, was stabbed to death in a west Sydney park just metres away from her home in March. She was on the phone with her husband G. Arun Kumar, who lives in Bengaluru, when she was killed.

"The footage is captured between 8pm and 9pm on Saturday the 7th of March, which is ... certainly the time of interest to us regarding the murder," ABC News quoted detective acting inspector Ritchie Sim as saying in a press conference.

"So I'm hoping... that this person may have seen someone, seen Prabha, or seen anyone acting suspiciously in the area at that time. While it is not the best footage, we are hoping it might prompt someone's memory," the police officer added.

Police may also travel to India as part of the investigation.

"Considering the nature of the investigation and because it is Prabha's home (country), it is an obvious line of inquiry," Sim said.

"Prabha was here in Australia working (but) the majority of her family are back in India and she only has a step-brother who lives in Western Australia, so it's a standard line of inquiry for us ... to speak to her family and put together that picture of who Prabha was and the whole victimology side of the investigation," Sim said.

The CCTV footage of the night Prabha Arun Kumar was killed, showed her on phone on a well-lit concourse near Parramatta railway station before she took a shortcut to her home in Westmead suburb through the dimly-lit Parramatta Park, where she was attacked and killed.

The Parramatta Park Trust, together with the Community Migrant Resource Centre, will hold a memorial service and unveil a plaque in the IT consultant's name to coincide with her birthday in November. A footpath will also be named after her.