COIMBATORE: The police arrested three including a 15-year-old boy on Saturday for strangulating a septuagenarian to death and looting his 7.5 sovereigns of gold jewellery in Erode.

The victim identified as MR Selvaraj (70), alias Delhi Selvaraj, a cloth merchant from Ammapet in Erode was found dead under mysterious circumstances at his house on December 24. He was unmarried and was living alone.

A post-mortem examination at Perundurai Government Medical College Hospital revealed that he was strangled to death. The police then perused the CCTV cameras fixed near his house and found three unidentified persons entering his house to execute the murder.

During a vehicle inspection near Vellitirupur on Saturday, the police intercepted the trio riding a two-wheeler. As they appeared suspicious, the police interrogated them. The preliminary inquiry revealed that the trio – G Dileep (29), M Ashok (24), and a 15-year-old boy had murdered Selvaraj and taken away his 7.5 sovereigns of gold jewellery. The police also recovered the stolen jewellery from them.