Conrad Bengaluru management has been booked for causing death by negligence after two foreign nationals died in a suspected electrocution incident at the hotel’s swimming pool on Friday evening, while two others were injured during rescue attempts. Police said they were alerted only after Manipal Hospital sent a medico-legal case memo several hours after the incident.
The deceased were identified as Alexander Maximilian Theiss, 57, a German national and Lufthansa crew member, and Juraj Horvat, 45, a Slovak national who worked as a project manager with IBM. Both had checked into the five-star hotel earlier on Friday.
According to preliminary accounts reported by Times of India, Horvat was entering the swimming pool on the hotel’s third floor when he screamed and began writhing. Theiss, who was swimming nearby, moved to help him and was also reportedly electrocuted. An American tourist, Mathew Desantis, 41, and pool attendant Rahul Tiwari, 28, were injured while trying to rescue the two men. All four were taken to Manipal Hospital. Theiss was brought dead, while Horvat could not be revived. The injured men were reported to be out of danger.
Dr Mabel Vasnaik, head of emergency medicine at Manipal Hospital, said the cause of death was electrocution. Bengaluru police commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh said the incident appeared to involve electrical leakage, but added that the exact cause would be determined after detailed medical and technical reports.
The FIR was registered around 4.30am on Saturday on a complaint by Horvat’s wife, Silvia Hotuatova. Police booked the hotel management under Section 106 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which concerns causing death by negligence and carries a maximum punishment of five years’ imprisonment and a fine.
A senior police officer said the force received information about the incident only around 11.10pm, when the hospital sent the medico-legal case memo. The officer said hotel staff should have informed the police immediately and alleged that there was pressure from some politicians and others not to share details with the media. These claims will form part of the investigation.
Sources said hotel employees disconnected the power supply to the pool after the incident, suspecting an electrical fault. Investigators are examining electrical installations around the pool, including LED lights fitted along the railings and inside the water. The technical investigation will determine whether an electrical leakage occurred, how it reached the pool area and whether safety systems functioned as required.
Conrad Bengaluru is a 24-storeyed luxury hotel built by Prestige Group and operated by Hilton. In a statement, the hotel said its management was cooperating with investigators. Police are awaiting medical and technical reports before establishing the precise cause of the deaths and fixing responsibility.
