Missing bizman murdered, buried by ‘friends’, 3 held

After his body was exhumed from Seyyur in Kancheepuram, police have arrested three suspects, and are on the lookout for four others who remain absconding.

According to police, the deceased, Kaliyamoorthy of Gangai Amman Koil Street, and the accused – Manikandan (46), Senthil (42) and Murugavel (48) – were part of a racket that created fake documents and sold lands.

After Kaliyamoorthy went missing on June 16, his wife Hema filed a complaint with the Tiruvanmiyur police, who registered a case and began searching for him. 

A few days ago, inspector Christian Jayasil received an input that Kaliyamoorthy’s friends had taken him in a car. But when the police started looking for them to inquire more, they could not be found. 

This led the police to suspect that they might be involved in the case. Three days ago, police received a tip-off about the whereabouts of three of them and picked them up. During interrogation, they admitted to having murdered Kaliyamoorthy. 

On Tuesday, police took them to the spot where he was buried and exhumed his body. The body was decomposed only about 20 per cent as the pit was watery and was sent for post-mortem examination, said police. Police said the gang had received Rs 18 lakh as commission for closing a land deal a few months ago. But Kaliyamoorthy, who had the money, did not share it with others. When they confronted him recently over this, he allegedly told them that the entire sum was spent. 

Infuriated over this, they hatched the plan to murder him. On June 16, they invited Kaliyamoorthy for a drink, and took him to Seyyur in Kancheepuram. After making him drink toddy, they attacked and murdered him, and buried the body there. All three were remanded in judicial custody on Wednesday. The investigation officer told DT Next that the remaining accused — Muthu, Dharma and Shiva — would be secured soon.