
PALAKKAD: Chenthamara, the absconding accused in the shocking double murder at Nenmara, was arrested on Tuesday night, approximately 36 hours after the crime.
Meanwhile, a large crowd gathered near the Nenmara police station upon hearing news of Chenthamara’s arrest. The police had to resort to lathicharge to disperse the crowd outside the station, before presenting the accused before media persons.
Alathur DySP Muraleedharan said Chenthamara, 58, was nabbed from a paddy field near Pothundi about 1km away from his house at Thiruthampadam.
“We took him into custody by 9.30pm. Anticipating that he may return to his house as he cannot control his hunger, we deployed multiple police teams near his house and possible hideouts nearby. He landed right in front of a search team,” the DySP told reporters.
Police sources said Chenthamara was visibly tired. “A medical check-up was conducted and he is physically stable,” said a source, adding that he had no weapon or any other items in possession when he was nabbed.
Earlier in the day, the bodies of Sudhakaran, 50, and his mother Lakshmi, 68, were cremated after tributes by relatives and the public at their house. They were hacked to death by Chenthamara, their neighbour, while he was out on bail in the murder of Sudhakaran’s wife Sajitha, 36, in 2019.
Following the crime, the police had launched a manhunt for Chenthamara, and searched various spots, including Ayyappan kunnu, focusing on the Nelliyampathy forest and surrounding mountains. Nearby ponds were also inspected by scuba divers. Chenthamara’s brother Radha was also taken into custody and questioned, but the police received no useful information.
Known for his fixation with witchcraft, Chenthamara reportedly used to spend all his money on its rituals. He had killed Sajitha after an astrologer claimed she was the cause of his family feud.
Nenmara on the boil
Residents of Nenmara, people’s representatives and politicians from the UDF and BJP camps had come down heavily on the police for their failure in informing the court about Chenthamara violating bail conditions.
They said though he had been prohibited from entering the panchayat, Chenthamara stayed at his house in Nenmara for about a month, while Nenmara SHO Mahendra Simhan, who has now been suspended pending inquiry ignored the stipulations.
Though Sudhakaran’s daughter Akhila had alerted the police about Chenthamara’s violations, her complaint was allegedly not taken seriously. Also, he threatened to kill Sudhakaran and his family, who were witnesses in the Sajitha murder case, but the threat was also not conveyed to the court, it is alleged.
SHO suspended
Nenmara SHO was suspended pending inquiry following a report by Palakkad SP Ajith Kumar. It pointed out critical lapses, stating that Chenthamara stayed in Nenmara for a month despite violating bail conditions.
The report also dismissed the SHO’s explanation that a copy of the bail order was unavailable at the station. The report, submitted before ADGP Manoj Abraham, questioned why steps were not taken to cancel Chenthamara’s bail.