AI Searches, Family Dispute and a Triple Murder in Bengaluru
A trail of disturbing AI-related searches has emerged as a significant part of the investigation into the killing of three members of a family in Bengaluru’s Seegehalli area.
According to investigators, 25-year-old tech professional J Kenneth allegedly used AI tools before the June 22 attack to explore different scenarios involving violence and overpowering people. The searches reportedly included questions about using a kitchen knife, incapacitating people by attacking their knees, and using vinegar and chili-based substances to temporarily blind someone.
Investigators discovered the searches while examining Kenneth’s laptop. The browsing history reportedly showed a pattern of questions exploring how multiple people could be attacked or subdued.
Among the searches were questions about fatally attacking someone with a kitchen knife, blinding people using vinegar, chili powder or chili paste, incapacitating three people by targeting their knees, and dealing with three intruders in an isolated house.
Kenneth also reportedly searched for information about some of the deadliest weapons used in killings. Other searches were unrelated to violence and focused on financial difficulties, including how to respond to repeated calls from banks over a friend’s loan and how bankruptcy could be declared.
The sequence of searches has drawn investigators’ attention because they allegedly occurred before Kenneth attacked the family of his live-in partner, Shwetha, inside their apartment on June 22.
Police have not established what responses Kenneth received from the AI system. The questions themselves were identified during forensic examination of the laptop, including through entries appearing in Google’s search interface.
Investigators also recovered a bottle containing a mixture of vinegar and chili powder at the crime scene. The substance has been sent for forensic examination.
A financial dispute turns deadly
According to the chargesheet filed in the case, the events leading to the killings were connected to mounting financial pressure.
Shwetha, who also worked in the technology sector, had reportedly taken loans totaling around Rs 52 lakh within a year, allegedly to support Kenneth. The borrowing included a Rs 30-lakh business loan, personal loans of Rs 8 lakh and Rs 6 lakh from two banks, and another Rs 8 lakh obtained from friends, relatives, classmates and colleagues.
As repayments fell behind, the bank that had sanctioned the business loan sent a notice to Shwetha’s parents’ home. The notice reportedly revealed to her parents that their daughter had borrowed a substantial amount of money.
The discovery led to a confrontation between Shwetha and her parents. Her father, Somasundar, later questioned Kenneth about the money and why the family was receiving notices over unpaid loans.
The dispute escalated days later.
On the night of June 22, Somasundar, his wife Muthulakshmi and their daughter Supriya were allegedly attacked inside their apartment at the Sai Green Apartment complex in Seegehalli.
Somasundar, who sustained multiple injuries, managed to escape the apartment and reach the staircase. He reportedly alerted security personnel and others that Kenneth was attacking his wife and daughter.
He was taken to a private hospital but later died. Muthulakshmi and Supriya were also found with multiple stab wounds and subsequently died from their injuries.
In a statement recorded before a court, Shwetha described how Kenneth allegedly attacked her parents and sister while she watched, according to the chargesheet.
The investigation now brings together two striking strands: a financial dispute that allegedly escalated into violence and a series of AI-related searches that investigators believe may help establish what Kenneth was considering before the attack. What remains unclear is precisely what influence, if any, those searches had on the events that followed.
