Perumbavur: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Ernakulam Rural Police on Tuesday claimed to have made a breakthrough in the murder case of the Dalit woman from Perumbavur. They said they got “reliable information” of the main accused and made a sketch of the culprit based on the account of an eyewitness.
The cops, later in the day, took into custody a neighbour of the victim who had “gone missing” after the brutal rape and murder of 30-year-old law student Jishamol on April 28, from Kannur.
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“We have got crucial information about the main accused who was reportedly seen coming out from the victim’s house on that day by a woman eyewitness. A sketch of him has been made and circulated to all investigation squads formed to probe the case. We can’t confirm the role of the one arrested from Kannur. He will be brought here and interrogated,” sources said, while almost ruling out involvement of any migrant labourers.
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The man taken into custody in Kannur had joined as an hotel employee two days back. The main suspect is believed to be an old classmate of the victim whom she met recently, they said.
Gangrape ruled out by cops
Three other suspects were also in police custody, including the brother-in-law of the victim. However, their roles are yet to be confirmed. “Initially a list of 70 suspects was prepared, but we have eliminated many from it," they said.
Meanwhile, inspector-general of police, Ernakulam Range, Mahipal Yadav who was camping at Perumbavur to oversee the probe, said it was not a case of gang rape. “The murder is committed by a single accused. We will nab him in two days," he said.
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ADGP, South Zone, K. Padmakumar, who visited the two-room house located on a two-cent Poramboke land on the banks of Vattolipidi canal in Iravichira, 4 km from Perumbavur, also ruled out gangrape. "It is committed by a single accused as per the evidence collected from the shanty," he said.
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Jishamol, 30, was found dead in her house on Thursday night when her mother returned from work at around 7.30 pm. According to the autopsy report, which points to the victim being subjected to rape and brutal torture, the attack must have taken place between 1 pm and 5 pm on Thursday.
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The victim was tortured with a sharp weapon pushed inside her vagina which pierced her uterus and eventually her intestines. Her body bore more than 30 stab wounds, including 13-cm one around her chest that reaches till her liver, pointing to brutal torture. She was suffocated to death using shawl-like cloth and also was beaten with a hard object on the back of her head, according to autopsy and inquest reports.
