RAMANATHAPURAM
A 40-year-old schoolteacher was found dead in a vacant plot of land near her house here on Monday morning with throat slit and strangulated with a nylon rope. Police have detained her husband for questioning, suspecting his hand in the murder.
As M. Shanmugapriya, working in a private school here, was found murdered at Kottaimedu area with her gold thali chain and other jewels intact, the police suspected foul play. Her husband, Mohanraj (45), who is running a saloon, told the police that they went to sleep after 11 p.m. on Sunday, and he found her missing around 4 a.m. on Monday. As she used to visit a nearby church in early hours, he went to the church and other places in search of her, but he could not find her anywhere, he said.
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Meanwhile, around 6 a.m., local people informed the police that a body was lying in the area. Fingerprint and forensic experts inspected the site and a sniffer dog was pressed into service. The body was removed to the Government Headquarters Hospital for post mortem.
Acting on the orders of Superintendent of police Omprakash Meena, a special team, headed by Dhanapalan, Inspector of Police (Serious Crimes), launched an investigation and found the needle of suspicion pointing to Mohanraj.
On being questioned by the police, he allegedly admitted to murdering his wife, suspecting her fidelity. He allegedly told the police that they had a tiff on Sunday night, after which she walked out of the house.
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Police sources said Mohanraj followed her, carrying a nylon rope and a kitchen knife. When she reached the vacant plot of land, he strangulated her with the nylon rope. After she fell down, he slit her throat with the knife, they said.
The SP said the call details of the mobile phones of Mohanraj and Shanmugapriya were being analysed. The couple’s son was doing his engineering degree in a private college in Pollachi and daughter was studying Class X here, the police said.