CHENNAI: A police team on Thursday questioned former AIADMK leader VK Sasikala in connection with the heist-cum-murder incident at Kodanad estate, which belonged to former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.
According to sources, Sasikala was asked whether she had any knowledge of the incident, which took place on April 23, 2017. She was serving a prison term in Bengaluru at that time.The police team, comprising Inspector General of Police (West) R Sudhakar, the Nilgiris Superintendent of Police Ashish Rawat, two deputy superintendents of police, and two inspectors, questioned Sasikala at her house in Habibullah Road in T Nagar. The interrogation was recorded on video.
The inquiry started around 11 am and the team left the premises around 5.30 pm. Police sources said she will be questioned on Friday as well. According to police sources, the team is trying to find out who was in charge of Kodanad bungalow in the absence of Jayalalithaa (who died in 2016) and Sasikala. The investigators also wanted to know the details of valuables and documents missing from the bungalow. This is the first time police have questioned Sasikala in the case.
In the incident, an armed gang killed a guard, entered the property, and decamped with valuables. Five days later, Kanagaraj, the first accused in the case, was killed in an accident on Salem-Chennai Highway in Attur. The same day, Sayan, another accused and a Kerala native, also met with an accident near Kerala’s Palakkad. His wife and daughter were killed in the accident but Sayan escaped with injuries.
A month later, an estate employee who was in charge of the CCTV cameras and computers was found dead under mysterious circumstances. The police filed a charge sheet in September last year.
A few days ago, the State police informed the Madras High Court that it questioned about 217 people in the case and that further investigation was underway.