KOTTAYAM: The Kottayam Principal Sessions Court will pronounce its judgment in the Kevin murder case on Wednesday. The court, which considered the incident as a case of honour killing, began the trial on April 24. Barring a 10-day break in May, the hearing was conducted without interruptions and the trial proceedings drew to a close on July 30, in a record time of just over three months.
According to the prosecution, Kevin P Joseph, son of Joseph Jacob alias Rajan, of Platharayil house, Nattasseri, near Kottayam, was abducted and murdered by a gang led by Syanu Chacko, brother of Kevin’s fiancee Neenu Chacko, as the victim belonged to a lower caste. Two days before the death, Kevin and Neenu had filed a joint application for marriage.
While Neenu was sent to a hostel thereafter, Kevin moved to the residence of Aneesh, one of his relatives, at Gandhinagar. On May 28, 2018, Kevin and Aneesh were abducted. Aneesh was let off later. However, Kevin’s body was recovered from a stream near Chaliyekkara, near Thenmala, the next day morning, the prosecution stated.
The special investigation team led by DySP Girish P Sarathy, under the supervision of the then district police chief Hari Sankar, swiftly completed the probe and submitted the chargesheet in the court on August 21, 2018, 85 days after the crime. As per the chargesheet, there are 14 accused, including Neenu’s brother Syanu Chacko and father Chacko John, and their relatives and friends.The prosecution also produced around 180 documents, 176 witnesses, DNA test results, details of phone calls made by the accused and three vehicles as evidence.