ALAPPUZHA: The additional district court in Mavelikkara on Saturday sentenced a 60-year-old man to death for the the murder of his wife 20 years ago.
Judge V G Sreedevi found Kutty Krishnan, of Alummoottil, Mannar, guilty of the brutal murder of his wife Jayanthi on April 2, 2004, at their house.
The act was committed in the presence of the couple’s one-and-half-year-old daughter.
According to the prosecution, Kutty Krishnan decapitated his 39-year-old wife, over suspicions of infidelity, using a knife and hammer. He reported her death at Mannar police station the next day.
The police investigation unveiled the motive and his role in the murder. After being granted bail, he absconded and remained at large.
In 2022, after Chaithra Theresa John took over as district police chief, a special team was constituted to close pending cases.
The court also issued a long-pending warrant. Based on the warrant, police launched an inquiry and Kutty Krishnan was arrested from Ernakulam on October 19, 2023.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the convict. Of this, Rs 50,000 is to given to the daughter through the Legal Services Authority, it directed.
The case was investigated by a team led by then Mannar circle inspector N A Rasheed. Additional public prosecutor P V Santhosh Kumar headed the prosecution.