Illustration of Jisha who was raped and murdered (EPS)
KOCHI: A mahazar witness in the sensational Jisha murder case was found dead at his residence at Kuruppampady on Saturday. The deceased is Sabu Mathai, 37, of Puthenkudiyil, Kuruppampady.
“He was found hanging inside his house around 12.30 pm. A case has been registered in connection with the incident,” said a police officer attached to the Kuruppampady police station.
Sabu was made mahazar witness after investigators recovered the slippers of the lone accused Ameerul Islam from a nearby canal. However, he was omitted from the trial proceedings by the court.
Though the police rule out any kind of ‘mystery’ behind his death, they will conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident.
Jisha, a law student, was brutally raped and murdered at her home on April 28, 2016. Sabu, a neighbour of the victim, had been under the police radar since the murder came to light.
He was one among the suspects who were taken into custody during the initial stage of the probe.
Hence, he was taken into custody and subjected to interrogation several times after the incident.
