The Erode district police on Sunday arrested two persons in connection with the murder of three women, who were offered poisonous substance under the pretext of ‘nutrition’ tablets near Chennimalai.
According to the police, the deceased were identified as Mallika (55), her daughter Deepa (30) and their farm worker Kuppammal (65). Karupanna Gounder, Mallika’s husband is under treatment at a private hospital in Coimbatore, police said.
On Saturday, while the four persons were at Karuppana Gounder’s house in Chennimalai, an unidentified person approached them to be coming from a COVID-19 special camp and offered them tablets and left the place. The four persons consumed the tablets and complained of nausea and other ailments within a few moments.
Neighbours rushed them to hospital. However, Mallika died on the way to hospital. Karupanna Gounder and Deepa were taken to a private hospital in Coimbatore where Deepa died on Sunday and Kuppammal died at the government hospital in Salem on Sunday.
Police on Sunday arrested two persons, Kalyanasundaram and his neighbour, a college student Bodesh Kumar.
According to the police, Kalyanasundaram and Karupanna Gounder had financial disputes and Kalyanasundaram used Bodesh Kumar to offer poisonous tablets to the family. Police are investigating.
