MALAPPURAM: The police investigation into the murder of Mysuru-based traditional healer Shaba Sharif has revealed that the master brain behind the crime was also behind the murder of two Malayalis in the UAE.
According to a senior police officer, main accused Shaibin Ashraf deployed an eight-member gang to kill his estranged business partner T P Harris, a native of Chathamangalam in Kozhikode, and the latter’s manager Densi Antony, a native of Chalakudy. Harris and Densi were killed in a flat in Abu Dhabi by the gang.
“The gang members lived the same apartment complex where Harris and Densi were found dead in March 2020. A relative of Ashraf had arranged the flat for the gang members. Shaibin controlled every movement of the gang from Kerala. After killing Harris and Densi, the culprits made it look like a case of suicide pact,” the police source said.The Abu Dhabi police found Harris with his wrist slit in the flat. The Abu Dhabi police believed that Harris had killed Densi before committing suicide.
As per Ashraf’s plot, the gang members killed Harris and made it look like it was a case of suicide. Densi reportedly requested them not to kill her because she was a mother of three. However, the culprits were cruel and refused to heed her pleas, the officer said.
The team had to continue to live in the flat complex for two more months following the Covid outbreak. The police said they got a video of a 45-page blueprint that was prepared to kill Harris and his manager. More arrests will be made in connection with the death of Harris and Densi in the coming days.
A team under Malappuram police chief Sujith Das has been investigating the death of Harris and his manager since Ashraf’s arrest in the murder of Shaba Sharif. Following his arrest, family members of Harris demanded a detailed investigation into the latter’s death in Abu Dhabi also. They suspected the involvement of Ashraf. Following the death of Harris, residents of Chathamangalam had formed an action council to unravel the mystery.