Did push-ups and disrespect lead to murder?
After tech CEO and cannabis entrepreneur Tushar Atre was kidnapped and murdered, investigators zeroed in on two former employees Atre allegedly forced to do push-ups.
Updated on: May 14, 2026 / 12:15 PM EDT / CBS News
When Tushar Atre was abducted in the predawn hours of October 1, 2019, from his home perched on the oceanside cliffs in Santa Cruz, California, his friends and neighbors in the usually quiet surf community were in disbelief. Confusion over who would kidnap the successful tech executive and cannabis entrepreneur turned to fear after he was found dead hours later on one of his cannabis properties — having sustained stab wounds and a fatal gunshot wound to the back of the head.
"Everyone was spooked. You could really see the fear in people's eyes," says CBS San Francisco, KPIX reporter Maria Cid Medina.
Investigators with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office cast a wide net for suspects, but according to Cid Medina, they initially did not have much to go on. "48 Hours" contributor Tracy Smith explores the ensuing seven-month long investigation in "Who Shot the Tech Exec?"
"There were not immediate suspects," says Cid Medina. "You got a sense that investigators did not have any leads in this case.
That all changed when detectives began to dig deeper into Atre's cannabis business. As they interviewed his employees and associates, there were two names they heard more than once.