
Staines Murder: Dara Singh Aide Mahendra Hembram Released from Jail After 25 Years
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PTI, KEONJHAR (ODISHA), APRIL 18, 2025 : Mahendra Hembram, one of the convicts in the 1999 high-profile triple murder case of Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two minor sons, was released from Keonjhar jail in Odisha on Wednesday after serving 25 years. Now 50 years old, Hembram was released from prison on grounds of good behavior during his incarceration.
"Hembram has been released following a decision by the State Sentence Review Board. The prison directorate informed about it in a letter on Tuesday. He has been released after 25 years because of good behavior in accordance with the rules," said Jailer Manaswini Naik.
Jail authorities gave Hembram a cordial farewell, garlanding him as a mark of recognition for his good conduct during his prison term. An official said Hembram was handed over a bank passbook, where his earnings from prison labor had been deposited.
"I spent 25 years in jail after being falsely implicated in an incident related to religious conversion. Today, I have been released," Hembram told reporters outside the jail.
Hembram and Dara Singh, alias Rabindra Pal Singh, were convicted of the brutal murders of Staines and his sons — Philip (10) and Timothy (6) — who were burned alive by a mob allegedly led by Singh on the night of January 21, 1999. The victims were sleeping in a station wagon parked in front of a church in Keonjhar district's Manoharpur village when the attack took place, triggering national and international outrage.
It was alleged that the Staines had spread straw over the vehicle to shield themselves from the cold, and the straw caught fire. When they tried to escape, the mob — armed with lathis — prevented them from getting out, leading to their deaths. Their skeletal remains were later recovered.
A total of 14 persons, including Singh and Hembram, were accused in the gruesome case. However, 12 of them were acquitted, while Singh and Hembram were sentenced to life imprisonment.
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