MADURAI: A Madurai district court on Monday convicted all nine accused policemen in the Sathankulam father-son custodial death case, holding that the charges of custodial torture and murder were proved. The court said the quantum of punishment will be pronounced on March 30.
Reading out portions of the 265-page judgment, Judge Muthukumar said the prosecution had established that Jayaraj and his son Bennix were subjected to sustained assault in police custody, leading to their deaths in 2020.
The court accepted the CBI’s case that the victims were taken to Sathankulam police station, falsely implicated, and beaten through the night. Postmortem findings confirmed that the deaths were due to injuries caused by assault with sticks and rods, and not due to illness. The court pointed out that even though the father, Jayaraj, was suffering from lung issues and heart problems, he didn't die of any of those issues, clearly placing the blame on the torture inflicted under custody.
Relying on witness testimonies, including those of police personnel, and forensic evidence, the court said the injuries inflicted were sufficient to cause unnatural death. Mobile tower data placed all the accused at the scene during the incident, while the blood-stained clothes of the victims were marked as key evidence.
The court also noted that the accused attempted to fabricate records and obstruct the investigation.
Holding the charges proved, the court declared all nine accused — inspector Sridhar, sub-inspectors Raghu Ganesh and Balakrishnan, and others — guilty.
The court directed the CBI and the State government to submit their views on sentencing. It also sought details of the accused persons’ salary, assets and mental health reports before pronouncing the sentence on March 30.
Jayaraj, a trader from Sathankulam in Thoothukudi district, and his son Bennix died in June 2020 after being taken into custody by police, triggering widespread outrage. The case was later transferred to the CBI.
Nine policemen were arrested and have remained in custody for over six years, with their bail pleas rejected by multiple courts. The trial, conducted in the I Additional District Sessions Court in Madurai, examined more than 100 witnesses, including police personnel who testified against their colleagues.