Three days after a 79-year-old woman was found murdered at her Matunga residence, Shahu Nagar police have arrested four people on Friday and booked them for robbery and murder under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. Police have also recovered gold ornaments which were reported missing from the senior citizen's residence.

According to the Shahu Nagar police, the incident came to light on Tuesday evening, when the deceased Vasanta Lakshmi Narayanan Iyer's housekeeper visited the house and found her lying on the floor with a dupatta tied across her neck.

Shahu Nagar police registered a case of murder and suspected robbery as Iyer's jewellery worth Rs 7.5 lakh was missing. "We questioned around 70-80 people who were probable suspects in the murder. However, during questioning, a couple was missing from the lot. When police traced them, they panicked and cracked during questioning," said Vikram Deshmane, deputy commissioner of police (zone 5). The couple, Akbar (35) and Sameera Shaikh (34), were immediately arrested.

"On Tuesday, the Shaikh couple and their two accomplices visited Iyer, following which they strangled her to death with a dupatta and fled with ornaments from her body and cupboard," said DCP Deshmane.