CHENNAI: A cattle farm owner and two others were arrested on Thursday for allegedly murdering a 15-year-old boy who had been working at their farm in Tiruttani in Tiruvallur district.
Police said the crime took place in February but came to light only after the victim's mother escaped from the farm and lodged a complaint on Wednesday night.
The accused were identified as M Murugan (44), the owner of the cattle farm, M Bhuvana (34), and M Vinoth (20), a relative of the victim's family. They were arrested by the Tiruttani Town police.
The deceased, S Suresh (15) of Thamaraikulam Street in Tiruttani, had been working at Murugan's farm along with his mother, S Vennila (40), and his two brothers, aged 17 and 4. Following the death of Suresh's father, the family had been employed at the farm for the past seven months.
According to police sources, Murugan had left Suresh in charge of the cattle while he travelled to Madurai with his family to attend a temple festival. During his absence, the boy allegedly got into a dispute with a neighbour, following which several cattle, goats, hens and around 50 chickens reportedly went missing from the farm.
When Murugan returned, he and Bhuvana allegedly confronted Suresh over the losses. Vinoth, who had introduced the family to Murugan and was related to them, also joined in. During the altercation, the trio allegedly assaulted the boy with a wooden log, leaving him unconscious, and he died on the spot.
Fearing the consequences, the accused allegedly buried Suresh's body within the farm premises and threatened Vennila not to reveal the incident to anyone. They also allegedly promised the family a lump-sum payment in exchange for their silence, sources said.
Police said Vennila remained confined to the farm until she managed to escape after the accused left the premises for a trip. She then approached the Tiruttani Town police and lodged a complaint.
Based on her complaint, the police registered a case and arrested the three accused. Revenue officials have been roped in to exhume the body, and further investigation is underway.