In a suspected case of twin murders and suicide, the bodies of two siblings and their father were found off the railway track at Veli early on Saturday. While the children were found dead near the track with deep wounds with a machete lying close by, their father’s body was fished out from the Veli lake.
According to the police, the deceased have been identified as Shibi, 36, and his children Feba, 9, and Febin, 6, of Sneha Bhavan at Chennilode, Kannammoola. The bodies of the siblings were initially found along with a machete and a severed hand in the bushes by railway officials during their routine inspection of the track by around 10 a.m.
The mutilated body of Shibi was recovered many hours later from the lake during a combined operation by the police and the Kerala Fire and Rescue Services. Believed to have been thrown away after being hit by a train, his legs remained untraceable, the police said.
The police suspect Shibi to have murdered the children before going on to commit suicide. Local residents have claimed to have seen the three persons travelling on a motorcycle in the area by around 6 p.m. on Friday. The two-wheeler has been found to have been parked near the railway bridge. Moreover, blood stains and hair strands, believed to be of the children, were found from the machete, the police said.
Kazhakuttam Cyber City Assistant Commissioner A. Pramod Kumar said that Shibi and his wife, Hannah Jose, a ministerial staff at the SAP camp, had been living separately for around six years. The siblings had been residing with their mother at the police quarters, from where Shibi had reportedly taken them on Friday evening. She had filed a missing complaint at the medical college police station later in the night.
Official sources said that Shibi had used to work as a dubbing artiste until some years ago, before falling prey to drug addiction and quitting his job. This is believed to have created problems within the family and they decided to live separately.
The bodies were shifted to the mortuary of the Thiruvananthapuram Government Medical College Hospital. A post-mortem will be conducted on Sunday. The Thumba police registered a case and launched a probe into the deaths.
