TIRUNELVELI: The accused person in the Vilathikulam schoolgirl murder case was shifted from the Palayamkottai Central Prison to the Madurai Central Prison on Friday night over alleged safety concerns.
Sources claimed that fellow inmates were enraged by the murder and the accused, Dharma Muneeswaran, was shifted to protect him from being attacked.
The alleged sexual assault and the murder of the Class 12 girl on March 10 created a stir across the region. Sources said the Thoothukudi police formed a special team, analysed CCTV camera footage from the region and arrested the accused.
He was produced before the Pocso special court in Thoothukudi, which remanded him to 14 days of judicial custody, following which he was lodged in the Palayamkottai Central Prison, added sources.
Based on a complaint given by the victim’s mother, Kulathur police had registered a case under Section 103(1) of the BNS and Section 5(1) read with Section 6 of the Pocso Act.