Indian-Origin Couple Arrested for Attempt to Murder Man’s Ex-Wife in U.S.

A man and his girlfriend, both of Indian origin, were arrested and charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder in New Jersey over their plan to hire a hitman to kill his ex-wife.

Narsan Lingala, 54, and Sandya Reddy, 51, both of Noblesville, Indiana, were arrested and charged after a three-month investigation by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, the FBI and the Woodbridge Police Department, CBS New York reported.

On Aug 18, the two met a hitman with photos of Lingala’s ex-wife, who is a North Brunswick resident, and her house, not knowing that the hitman was an undercover police officer, the report said. They were arrested on the same day.

Detectives recorded phone calls with the couple, who now live in Noblesville, Indiana, outside Indianapolis, Nj.com reported citing documents reviewed by NJ Advance Media in connection with the case.

Following her arrest, Reddy admitted that she knew about the murder plot in a videotaped statement to police, the report added.

Lingala allegedly hatched the murder plot after fighting a court case for years in an effort to get his child support and alimony amounts reduced, IndyStar reported.

Though his ex-wife has not been named, a former lawsuit found by Indiawest revealed that Lingala married Saroja Alkanti in 1995. The couple had a son and a daughter who are now 21 and 15 years old, respectively.

Lingala was served a restraining order during the course of his marriage following allegations of domestic violence, reports said. He filed for divorce in May 2011. In 2012, he was charged criminally with contempt of court for allegedly violating the restraining order, but the matter was ultimately transferred to family court.

The earlier lawsuit also revealed that Lingana agreed to pay weekly child support of $358, on calculations of his annual income at $162,000 while his wife’s income was $47,000.

Lingala was the sole owner of IT firm LMN Solutions, which had a fair value of $214,000 at that time, IndyStar reported, citing the court decision.

He later argued that his earning was calculated incorrectly and that he should pay a lower amount for the child support and alimony. In 2015, Lingala lost the appeal to have the matrimonial settlement agreement set aside.