Investigators are piecing together the final moments of Dr C J Roy, the 57-year-old Dubai-based chairman and founder of Confident Group, who was found dead with a gunshot wound inside his Bengaluru office on January 30, even as Income Tax officials were present on the premises.
According to a minute-by-minute reconstruction based on official and media reports, Roy arrived at the Confident Group office around 3 pm, accompanied by Managing Director T A Joseph, to cooperate with an ongoing Income Tax (I-T) inquiry. Coordinated searches by teams from Kochi and Bengaluru had been underway for three consecutive days, following earlier inspections last month.
Sources said Roy appeared calm and expressed his willingness to clarify all matters with the officials. After reviewing documents, he entered his private cabin and asked to speak to his mother. By then, Joseph had stepped out of the office area.
A security guard later told investigators that Roy instructed him not to allow anyone into the cabin, stating that he would make a phone call and return shortly. Instead, he reportedly moved into an adjacent room.
Around 10 minutes later, Joseph returned and knocked on the cabin door. Receiving no response, he forced the door open and found Roy seated on a chair with bloodstains on his shirt. Staff immediately called an ambulance.
Roy was first taken to a nearby private hospital and later shifted to Narayana Hospital in HSR Layout, where doctors declared him dead on arrival. Police confirmed that the gunshot injury was on the left side of his chest. A licensed pistol recovered from the scene has been seized for forensic and ballistic examination.
Police have not yet confirmed whether the cabin was covered by CCTV surveillance.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Division) Akshay Machindra Hakay said that prima facie evidence points to death by gunshot, adding that a detailed investigation is underway. Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh confirmed that forensic, SOCO, and ballistic teams are analysing the scene.
Roy’s family has alleged that he was under severe mental stress due to repeated Income Tax searches, though they insist he had no debts or financial troubles. His brother, CJ Babu, said the family wants a thorough probe to establish the truth.
Roy’s wife Lina Roy and son Rohith Roy arrived from Dubai on Saturday and were present at the Bowring Hospital post-mortem centre. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has announced a high-level investigation into the circumstances surrounding the businessman’s death.
