Woman, 18-month-old girl murdered; bodies retrieved

February 20, 2021 06:06 pm | Updated 06:06 pm IST - TENKASI

Police retrieved on Saturday the highly decomposed bodies of a 55-year-old woman and her 18-month-old granddaughter, who were apparently murdered 39 days ago after the woman pestered a man to repay with interest the loan he had availed from her husband.

Police said Uchimakaali - Gomathi couple of Keezhapuliyoor near Tenkasi had married off their daughter Subbulakshmi to Murugan from nearby Kadapothi. Since Murugan is serving in the Indian Army, Subbulakshmi and her 18-month-old daughter Uthra alias Sakshi were living with her parents at Keezhapuliyoor.

When Gomathi and Uthra went missing on January 12 last, Uchchimaakaali filed a complaint with the Tenkasi police after his attempts to locate them failed. The police did not get any breakthrough in the investigation.

After the family of Gomathi suspected a person from Vettaikkarankulam near Tenkasi, who had borrowed money from Uchchimaakaali, of having kidnapped Gomathi with the baby, a police special team picked him up for interrogation on Friday. When he was grilled, he reportedly told the police that he, with the help of a few others, abducted Gomathi and Uthra and murdered them as the women had been pestering him to repay the loan with interest he had borrowed from her husband.

They had packed the bodies in gunny bags and dumped them in a forest area near Muthumalaipuram close to Mathalamparai off the Western Ghats.

The bodies were retrieved on Saturday and sent for post-mortem. Since the bodies were retrieved from the area under the jurisdiction of Courtallam police station, they are also investigating.

The police have picked up three more persons for interrogation.

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