A post-mortem examination of a 49-year-old anti-poaching watcher (APW) in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) revealed that he died from a head injury, not an elephant attack as initially suspected.
D. Thangaraj, along with his brother Velumani, was working in the Vilamundi forest range of the STR. On Friday, a villager reported that Thangaraj had died in an attack by an elephant, but when officials inspected the body, they found no external injuries and suspected foul play.
It was later revealed that villagers had falsely claimed an elephant attack to secure compensation. Thangaraj had gone to the bathroom late at night and was found unconscious by his brother after failing to return. The body was initially taken to Sathyamangalam and later moved to the Government Erode Medical College and Hospital for a post-mortem. Doctors confirmed the cause of death was a head injury, with no signs of an animal attack. The exact cause of death will be confirmed after further analysis. T
he case is under investigation by Sholurmattam police. Thangaraj is survived by his wife and 17-year-old daughter.
