THIRUVANTHAPURAM: A 48-year-old Nepali national, who was arrested in connection with a robbery at Hariharapuram near Varkala, collapsed to death while being produced before the magistrate on Thursday evening.
Ram Kumar, a native of Lamki Chuha of Kaikali district in Nepal, complained of uneasiness while he was presented before the magistrate court at Varkala by 5pm. He was rushed to the taluk hospital, but his life could not be saved.
Sources said Kumar had complained to the doctor, who had conducted medical examination before being produced before the magistrate, about being beaten up. Sources, however, could not confirm whether Kumar had mentioned being beaten up by the cops or the local residents, who had apprehended him near the house where he and four others committed robbery on Tuesday night. The gang administered sedatives to the women inhabitants and looted the house.
However, police sources claimed that Ram did not raise any complaints that he was beaten up. “He was produced before the doctors for medical examination twice. He did not tell them that he was beaten up. There were no external injury marks on his body,” said an officer.
Ram was handed over to the police by local residents by 6am on Wednesday. He was taken for medical examination on Wednesday itself as he was detained by the public and there were chances of him being subjected to physical assault.
“He told the doctors that he suffered a few injuries while trying to escape from the crowd. He did not tell them about getting beaten up,” the police officer claimed.
Senior officers, meanwhile, said the exact reason for death would be revealed after the postmortem is done on Friday. Since the death occurred in police custody, the case will be handed over to the Crime Branch first. The CBI might also get involved if there are chances of sabotage during the Crime Branch probe.
A five-member Nepali gang, including a woman working as a maid, looted the house on Tuesday night after sedating the residents by administering drug-laced food. The group entered the house of Sreedevi Amma and decamped with an undisclosed quantity of gold and `30,000 in cash.
Two of the suspects, Janak Sha, 42, and Ram Kumar, were caught by the local people and handed over to the Ayiroor police.
The robbery was carried out allegedly with the active support of a Nepali woman, who was working as a housemaid at Sreedevi Amma’s house. The police have not been able to verify her name. One of the arrested, however, told the cops that her name is Sohilla.
She began working at Sreedevi’s house 15 days ago. Police sources said she could have been instructed by one of the men, who is on the run, to take up work as a maid to carry out the robbery.
The police suspect that the housemaid could have mixed sedatives in the food consumed by Sreedevi, her daughter-in-law Deepa and home nurse Sindhu. The incident came to light when Sreedevi’s son, who works in Bengaluru, failed to get either his mother or wife on the phone. Whenever he tried, the calls were abruptly cancelled from the other end. Sensing danger, he alerted a relative residing in the neighbourhood. When the person arrived to check on the situation, by 11pm, he saw a group of people fleeing the house. He immediately alerted the neighbours and they rounded up two of the suspects. Kumar was found hiding on the house premises while Sha was found entangled in a barbed wire mesh.
The three inhabitants of the house were found in an unconscious state and were shifted to a private hospital in Kollam. Their condition is reported to be stable. The police said the men worked as farm labourers and had been staying in Kerala for some time.
Cops or residents?
Sources could not confirm whether Kumar had mentioned being beaten up by the cops or the local residents, who had apprehended him near the house where he and four others committed robbery on Tuesday night