Nearly a month after Dinesh Kannappan (25), a BPO employee, fled after allegedly murdering his girlfriend and unsuccessfully trying to dump her body, police are yet to trace him. Police say one reason is that he has not left behind any digital trail.
City police teams are combing pilgrimage destinations close to Chennai, including Tirupati and Tirutani for him. Since Dinesh has not made any call home, or drawn money from an ATM, it has been difficult to trace him despite strenuous efforts, police officers said.
On March 9, Dinesh allegedly murdered his girlfriend Aruna Srinivasan, an ICWA student and an intern at the Food Corporation of India, following an altercation a while after he had forced her to come to his apartment on Baraka Road, Nammalwarpet near Ayanavaram.
His parents and sister were at a private hospital where his father had been admitted.
He dumped Aruna’s body in the backseat of his car in his apartment’s parking lot but was not able to dispose of the body. He then fled. An hour later, he threw the victim’s bag containing her jewellery and cash outside her residence in Choolai and abandoned her scooter a few streets away. However, he took her mobile phone though he got rid of the SIM card.
“Aruna wanted to break up with Dinesh, but he had refused and was giving her a tough time. On the day of murder, he forced the girl to come home after threatening to commit suicide in what could possibly have been an attempt to reconcile with her or on failing to do so, murder her,” said an investigating officer.
Investigators have gathered details about duo after questioning Dinesh’s friends from school, college and his colleagues. His co-workers told police that Dinesh suffered from a severe inferiority complex and was often the subject of ridicule at office which left him agitated.
Dinesh is now believed to be surviving on the cash he took from his house while leaving. On receiving information that he could be in Bengaluru where his father owns a house, a police team looked for him there, but in vain.
“He hasn’t used a mobile phone to contact his family or friends from day one and has not used an ATM at any point. We suspect he is hiding near temples in Tirupati or Thiruchendur, disguised as a devotee as food and accommodation would not be a problem. Teams are now combing these locations and will hopefully track him down soon,” the officer added.
