Balasore, May 20: The mystery behind the recovery of a bullet- ridden body of a middle-aged woman near the forest on Udla-Jaipur Road on May 11 was solved with the arrest of one person yesterday.

Police are looking for the prime accused, Pradip Sahu, 49, a real estate developer, who allegedly had an extra-marital affair with the 42-year-old victim.

Sahu had taken Rs 8 lakh from the woman for his own business and allegedly got her killed to get rid of the debt burden, said sources in the police.

The Mayurbhanj police took his accomplice, Prakash Mandal alias Kalia, 42, into custody. Kalia had driven the car in which Sahu and the deceased, Jayanti, had travelled from Balasore to Udla-Jaipur Road.

“Sahu had hatched the conspiracy after Jayanti had asked him to return her money,” said Subrat Behera, inspector in-charge of Udla police station.

“He called the victim to a place near Balasore railway station on the pretext that he would return the money in the evening of May 10. The woman used to stay with her son in Balasore. She told her son that she had some urgent work and would be back within a few hours,” said the inspector in-charge.

“The woman reached the place near the station and was asked to accompany the duo in the car. Later, when her son tried to contact her on phone, he found her mobile to be switched off,” he said.

Behera said the woman was brought out of the car near the forest and Sahu had fired four shots at her from a close range. She died on the spot.

Next morning, her bullet-ridden body was found near a jungle on the roadside near Udla market.