Five arrested in murder case, search on for another accused

The Kankanady Police have arrested five persons said to be involved in the murder of a 20-year-old youth in a lodge near Pumpwell Junction here on Saturday last.

The names of the arrested persons were given as Joyson, Praneet, Karthik, Prajwal and Durgesh.

The police said that the five arrested persons were among the six who had booked a room in Sai Palace Lodge on Friday. These six had called the 20-year-old Dhanush to the room to counsel the latter not to use foul language against the former in public places.

All the seven partied till around 2.30 a.m. on Saturday, when there was a heated exchange of words between Dhanush and the six other members.

Joyson reportedly used a sharp knife to stab Dhanush twice on the chest. Dhanush came out of the room and collapsed as he was getting down the stairs. He was immediately taken to a hospital where he was declared dead, the police said.

Police Commissioner N. Shashi Kumar told reporters on Monday that the police have gathered evidence that showed the accused persons had called Dhanush to the room in order to murder him.

Three of the accused persons, Joyson, Praneet and Karthik, are involved in criminal cases. Joyson is an accused in a rioting and Narcotic and Psychotropic Substances Act case registered in Mangaluru South and Mangaluru East police stations in 2016 and 2017.

Praneet is accused in nine criminal cases, while Karthik is accused in two criminal cases.

The police have so far not found any criminal cases pending against Prajwal and Durgesh. All the five were subjected to medical test to know whether they had consumed cannabis, he said.

A search is on to trace the sixth accused person, Mr. Kumar added.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (South) Ranjith Kumar Bandaru was present.