Lab technician shot dead by blood bank operator’s son in UP’s Sitapur: Police

A 35-year-old lab technician was allegedly shot dead by the lab operator’s son following a dispute at a family-run blood bank in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur district in the early hours of Friday, police said.

According to police officers, the accused, Shivesh Singh (40), and the deceased, Satish Yadav, were both working at the same blood bank and pathology laboratory operating from the ground floor of a two-storey house in the Naipalapur locality when Singh opened fire.

Yadav, a resident of Azamgarh, had reportedly been working as a lab technician at the blood bank for two months after moving to Sitapur following his resignation from a hospital in Lucknow.

Shivesh looked after the day-to-day operations and management of the lab owned by his father, Rajkumar Singh, , a retired police head constable.

Circle officer (Sadar) Neha Tripathi said that police were informed around 2 am about a fatal gunshot injury at the blood bank, and it was initially presented as a suicide case. “Police and the forensic team immediately reached the spot and collected evidence. During questioning, it came to light that the technician had been shot by the son of the lab operator. The accused was taken into custody and is being questioned,” Neha said.

Police said the duo had differences for some time over work-related issues at the laboratory, which turned ugly and led to a heated argument late on Thursday night. “Shivesh allegedly lost his temper, went to his father’s room on the upper floor, opened an attaché case, took out his father’s licensed revolver, and returned to the lab area, where he allegedly shot Satish in the head,” a police officer said.

The sound of the gunshot woke up family members and other laboratory staff staying in adjoining rooms. They took Yadav to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Police said preliminary questioning suggests the accused was allegedly suffering from bipolar disorder, though the exact trigger behind the murder is still under investigation.

Inspector in-charge of Kotwali Dehat police station Amar Singh said the licensed revolver used in the crime was seized and the laboratory premises sealed for forensic examination.

The body was sent for postmortem, and further legal action will be taken after the victim’s family submits a formal complaint, police said.