KOCHI: Case-I
The body of an unidentified man was found in a sack dumped in the Kochi backwaters near Nettoor on November 8, last year. According to police officers, the man had been smothered to death before being stuffed in the sack. A cloth was found stuffed in the man’s mouth and his face had been covered using adhesive tape. Based on the circumstantial evidence, the police suspect the man had been murdered and have registered an FIR in this regard. But, apart from guessing the age of the deceased to be around 40 years, the police are yet to identify the man or what led to his murder. The body, with the limbs tied, was found floating in the backwaters of Nettoor. Police suspect the corpse to be four-days-old. It was spotted by workers at a nearby toddy shop.
Status: No breakthrough; body still unidentified.
Case-II
Skeletal remains of an unidentified person were found in a barrel floating in a lake near Kumbalam on January 8, this year. This comes barely three months after the remains of a man in a sack were fished from the backwaters near Nettoor. Local residents alerted the police when they found ants swarming the barrel. Police broke open the barrel, which had been sealed with concrete on both sides, and recovered the skeleton.
Forensic experts confirmed the remains to be that of a 30-year-old woman, who had suffered a fracture on her left leg. The skeleton was at least a year old. Except for the skeleton and hair, there was nothing left of the body. According to the officers, the skeletal remains were identified to be that of a woman from the hair, dress and a silver waistband (aranjanam) found in the barrel. According to the police, the barrel was found floating near the land owned by a private firm based in Alappuzha. Apparently, it was discovered when a JCB was used to clean a drain on the land located near the lake in December 2016. The barrel was fished out and abandoned on the land. Status: No breakthrough; body still unidentified.
These two are not isolated incidents. In the past six years, around 395 unidentified bodies were found in Kochi. But, nearly all of these cases end up under the ‘undetected’ category after years of investigation.
A forensic expert, under the condition of anonymity, told Kochi Express, there has been a rise in the number of unidentified bodies being recovered in Kerala. On an average, around 30 to 40 bodies are found every month. According to him, in the case of Kochi, these unidentified bodies might tell a story that reeks of crime. “Many of these bodies are found on railway tracks or waterbodies, mostly under suspicious circumstances. Police find it difficult to clear the mystery behind these deaths due to lack of evidence,” he said. Even the bodies fail to tell us anything, especially about their identity, since most of them are recovered in a highly decomposed state, the forensic expert added.
“In several cases, these unidentified bodies are of destitute. In order to identify a person, we need to have at least one specific feature. But these features get obliterated once the body decomposes,” he said. According to him, forensic facial restructuring using computer modelling software will go a long way in directing the police in the right direction.He said once an unidentified body is recovered, the police shift it to the Government Hospital. “The body is kept at the hospital for 72 hours and if the relatives or legal heirs don’t turn up it is declared as ‘unclaimed’ or ‘unidentified’ and shifted to the public burial ground,” said the officer.
The city police are clueless about the two bodies recovered recently. They neither have information about who the victims are nor the culprits. These two cases were reported in Kochi in a gap of three months and the police suspect they have been committed by the same people. According to police officers, the cases have some similarities.Since only the skeleton was recovered in the case of the woman, the medical team followed an entirely different protocol while performing the post-mortem. Techniques such as forensic facial reconstruction were used and the findings including the possible feature of the victim were handed over to the investigation team. “We will perform few other scientific tests to identify the victim.
The priority is to identify the victim by matching the person’s DNA with the relatives of the missing women. However, we can’t disclose more about it since the probe is underway. We hope to complete all the scientific examinations within a period of two weeks,” said an officer with the investigation team.
City Police Commissioner M P Dinesh said all possible angles are being investigated to nab the culprits. “Since the investigation is progressing we can’t divulge more about its status,” he added.
Dismal figures
In response to an RTI query regarding unidentified bodies, the Ernakulam General Hospital presented shocking figures. According to data, in the past six years, 395 unidentified bodies were found in Kochi. On an average, the hospital receives 60 bodies per year and five per month. The hospital hands over the bodies to private medical colleges in the state. Raju Vazhakkala, an RTI activist had submitted the application before General Hospital authorities.
‘DNA database needed urgently’
Dr B Umadathan, retired Director of Medical Education and Medico-Legal advisor to Kerala Police, said a comprehensive database of unknown or unidentified dead bodies and missing persons is the need of the hour. “An effective system should be in place to correlate the details received from the body and the missing person. Apart from this, a DNA database is required in order to easily track these type of cases,” he said.
Unnerving situation
In the past six years, 395 unidentified bodies were found in Kochi
On an average, the Government Hospital here receives 60 bodies per year and five per month
The hospital hands over the bodies to private medical colleges in the state
Once an unidentified body is recovered, the police shift it to the Government Hospital
An effective system should be in place to correlate the details received from the body and the missing person