A fugitive who evaded the police dragnet for nearly two decades after murdering a police officer was arrested near Thumba on Thursday.
Notorious goon Santhosh, alias Jet Santhosh, 45, of Attipra was arrested by the Thumba police in their third attempt to nab him. While he twice managed to escape after brandishing a gun, a similar attempt made on Thursday turned futile as the police team overpowered him. A revolver containing six pellets was also seized from him.
Santhosh had been accused of hacking to death assistant sub-inspector Krishnankutty in 1998 after allegedly barging into his house at Chempazhanthy . The attack was purportedly in retaliation for his and his accomplice’s arrest in criminal cases.
Following his arrest, he had managed to obtain bail. Santhosh, however, violated bail conditions and fled. The court had subsequently declared him a fugitive and issued a long pending (LP) warrant against him.
Having been on the run in various places, including Kannur, Coimbatore, Chennai and Colachel, Santhosh had also attempted to flee the country applying for a duplicate passport claiming he had lost the original document in the tsunami in 2004. He managed to give the Thumba police the slip during operations that were undertaken in 2017 and 2020.
On receiving information that he had come to his home, a special team led by Deputy Commissioner Ankit Ashokan rounded up the accused around 2 a.m. While he made an attempt to escape by jumping from the terrace of the house, he was finally brought to book. He was remanded in judicial custody.
