KOCHI/IDUKKI: In a dramatic twist in the case relating to the 14-year-old who went missing on his way home from his school in Edappally, a 67-year-old man was taken into custody from Thodupuzha on Wednesday. Later, the Elamakkara police recorded the arrest of Sasikumar -- a palmist by profession and a resident of Kolany, Thodupuzha, in Idukki district -- under various sections of the Pocso Act.
After the police found the duo at the Thodupuzha bus stand at 7.30am on Wednesday, the boy revealed that Sasikumar had molested him as he spent the night at the man’s house. According to the Elamakkara police, Sasikumar panicked on seeing news reports about the boy and contacted the child’s parents in the morning.
“We took the suspect into custody after the boy revealed he was molested. His arrest was made after recording the child’s statement and interrogating the suspect,” Elamakkara station house officer Harikrishnan K B said.
Sasikumar has a prior case registered against him at the Thodupuzha police station for causing disturbance in his neighbourhood, with a court having issued a conviction warrant against him.
On the sequence of events, another officer with the probe team, who chose to remain anonymous, said the boy had gone to attend his Summative Assessment exam on Tuesday morning. Due to heavy rain, the invigilator collected the answer sheets early and allowed the students to leave sooner than scheduled.
The boy headed to Vazhakkala, where a film shoot was taking place. From there, he took a series of buses and finally reached the Thodupuzha bus stand around 6pm. As it got late, he became scared and approached Sasikumar for help to return home.
“Sasikumar initially offered assistance but then took the boy to his house, where he behaved inappropriately with the child,” the officer said.