Debt-ridden bizman smothers wife, 2 sons to death, kills self

CHENNAI: Allegedly distressed over mounting debts, a 45-year-old businessman murdered his wife and two sons, aged 15 and 11, before taking his own life at the family's residence in a gated community in Injambakkam along East Coast Road on Tuesday.

The deceased are identified as Siranjeevi Dhamothara Gupta (45), his wife, Revathi (36) and their two sons - Rithvik (15) and Dhithick Ashwa (11). Siranjeevi ran a CCTV camera showroom in the city.

Preliminary investigations have suggested that the man gave sedatives to his wife and children and then smothered them to death using plastic sheets. He also slit his wife's throat and later killed himself in the bathroom.

Probe revealed that Siranjeevi transferred Rs 4 lakh to his relatives early in the day, which intrigued them. After unsuccessful attempts at reaching Siranjeevi over the phone, his uncle informed other relatives, who rushed to the scene and found the family members dead.

On information, a team from Neelankarai Police Station reached the spot, recovered the bodies and sent them to Government Royapettah Hospital for post-mortem examination.

Police quoted the family members as saying that they were unaware of Siranjeevi's financial burden. A suicide note was recovered from the house, in which Siranjeevi and his wife had purportedly stated that they had mounting debts and that no one was responsible for their decision.

A police officer said that they would be checking bank statements and questioning business acquaintances to learn about Siranjeevi's situation.

Neelankarai Police have registered a case and are investigating.

In a similar incident early this year, in March, a doctor, his lawyer wife, and two teenage sons were found dead inside their apartment in Anna Nagar. Police had said that it was a suicide pact, and mounting debts forced the family to take the extreme step.