KOCHI: THE inquiry into the mysterious death of a 26-year-old man inside the Thattekad Bird Sanctuary has taken a new turn, with the police claiming that the youth was killed by a shot fired accidentally from the country-made rifle of another member of the group, which was allegedly engaged in elephant poaching.
The matter came to light after the police took into custody Shyte Joseph, 30, of Vadakkel, Thattekad, and Anish, 25, of Nalucent Colony, Thattekad, who had been absconding after the incident. The duo is being interrogated by a team led by Muvattupuzha DySP Biju Mon.
“They confessed that Thattekad-native Tony, the deceased, was hit by a bullet fired by one of the other members at a wild elephant, which had unleashed a sudden attack on them. It is learnt that the group of poachers had carried more than one gun, contrary to earlier reports. We have identified the person who fired the shot that killed Tony. Now, the investigation will focus on finding out whether the gun went off accidentally, or was it fired deliberately,” said an official.
“We have begun verifying statements of the accused. All the available evidence, including the autopsy report, will be examined,” said Kuttampuzha SI Jamsheer, adding that all the members the group were booked on charges of culpable homicide and under Sections of the Arms Act. Besides, the Forest Department has registered a case against the men for trespassing into the sanctuary with lethal weapons for hunting, under various provisions of the Wild Life Protection Act-1972. Initially, it was reported that Tony, a suspected poacher, was trampled to death by a wild elephant while on a hunting spree with three others. However, the postmortem revealed that the youth had bled to death from injuries sustained on his left thigh, from shot fired from a country-made rifle.
Basil Thankachan, 35, who sustained injuries on his spinal cord in the encounter, is undergoing treatment at a private hospital. His statement was recorded earlier. Meanwhile, call details of the mobile phone that was in the possession of the deceased revealed that he had called one Palamala Reji soon after being hit by the bullet. Reji is accused in a controversial elephant poaching case registered in 2015. The other accused in the case were reportedly under Reji’s protection, during their exile.