KOCHI: Officers investigating the suicide of a four-member family in Kadamakkudy have uncovered the potential role of Sri Lankan-based criminal networks linked to online instant loan applications The probe took a significant turn with police tracing the whereabouts of the number used to send obscene images of one of the victims to relatives. Nijo Johny, 39, his wife Shilpa, 32, and their children, Ebel, 7, and Aron, 5, were found dead on September 12 at their residence in a suspected case of suicide.
“During investigation, we realised Shilpa took loans from some online lending firms. However, she had trouble repaying them. The companies resorted to sending obscene messages to the victim and their relatives. When we traced the mobile number, we realised that it was based in Sri Lanka. The fraudsters may have operated from that country,” said a police source. Earlier, officers suspected the role of North India-based gangs, as is the trend. However, details of the WhatsApp number from which relatives received the messages painted a different picture.
“We need to dig deeper to confirm the involvement of Sri Lankan-based networks. However, we are not ready to rule out the involvement of North Indian-based gangs,” said the officer. Meanwhile, cops are yet to unlock Shilpa’s mobile, which is expected to throw more light on the dealings.
“Since we need to access the data, we refrained from cracking the password. We have handed the phone over to the forensic science laboratory (FSL). We are awaiting a report from the FSL for more clarity on the case,” said the officer.
Recently, a 22-year-old engineering student committed suicide after falling prey to a Chinese online firm offering instant loans in Karnataka. Tejas Nair was allegedly harassed by a company executive after he missed payments.