ALAPPUZHA: The mad craving to buy a mobile phone has landed a 19-year-old in trouble. Jerin Raju did not give a second thought before strangulating his friend’s mother to death and fleeing with Rs 10,000 kept in her cupboard - all but to buy a new cell phone.
Police said the incident at Kattanam, near Alappuzha, came to light on Saturday after Sudhakaran, a daily wage worker, saw his wife Thulasi hanging from the ceiling of their house when he returned home after work. The arrested has been identified as their next door neighbour Jerin Raju of Puthenveetil.
Vallikunnam sub-inspector M C Abhilash said the murder took place on Saturday. “Jerin, a friend of Thulasi’s elder son, was a regular visitor to their house. On Saturday evening while watching television in Thulasi’s drawing room, Jerin noticed cash in the cupboard nearby. As he was aware that none other than Thulasi was in the house Jerin made up his mind to take away the cash at any cost and waited for the right moment. When Thulasi went to the bathroom, he opened the cupboard and tried to steal the cash. By the time Thulasi came out and saw him get hold of the money. She scolded him and tried to get back the cash. In a fit of rage he pushed Thulasi. When she tried to raise an alarm, he strangulated her to death. He then tied her to a sari and hanged her to the hook of the roof and decamped with the money,” he said.
The elder son of Thulasi works with a milk cooperative society and was at work at the time of the incident. The younger one is mentally retarded and was not at home. Sudhakaran who reached home by 5.15 pm rushed her to private hospital where doctors declared her brought dead. The hospital authorities informed the police. After the autopsy on Sunday the doctors of Alappuzha Medical College informed the police that the housewife was strangled to death by somebody and it was not case of suicide,” the SI said.Based on the postmortem report, the police started an investigation. Jerin was taken into custody following a detailed interrogation on Monday. He has confessed to having committed the murder and will be produced before the court on Tuesday, police said.