Tamil Nadu: Four arrested for masquerading murder as road accident

The deceased victim was identified as 56-year old railway employee N. Senthamaraikannan of KTC Nagar, Palayamkottai, Tirunelveli. The incident occurred on the night of January 16 near a bridge at Kalvai on Tirunelveli-Tiruchendur highway when the ill-fated employee was returning home after his duty.

Based on a complaint by Pradeep (30), son of the deceased, Seydunganallur police filed a case under Section -304 (A) (fatal accident). The police, while combing CCTV footage, found a car dashing behind a bike ridden by the victim and that seemed an intent to kill him.

A gang of five men was accused of conspiracy in the killing. While M. Magesh (33) of Vallanadu and S Sudalaimani (29) of Kaliyavur were arrested on Friday night, two others including Jegan alias Jegan Pandian (33) of Moolikulam, Palayamkottai and K. Kanthakumar (33) of Parvathiammalpuram, Vallanadu have been arrested on Saturday.

Thoothukudi SP S Jeyakumar, after inquiring, said enmity between the victim, a native of Nazareth, and O Samrat of the same locality, simmering from a land dispute one and half decade ago, resulted in the murder.

When Samrat along with the gang was touring Goa in the first week of this month, died in a train accident on January 4. To express his regret over Samrat’s death, Senthamaraikannan on Facebook commented ‘God’s punishment’- (Iraivan Udaya Thandanai). Irked over his comment, the gang hatched the murder plot, the SP said.