Kerala man who killed five, including grandmother and brother, tries to end life in jail

Incident follows filing of charge sheet in grandmother's murder; accused under treatment at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College

FILE | Afan, the accused in the Venjaramoodu mass murder case, being escorted to Poojappura Central jail. Express Photo

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Afan, 23, who is accused in the Venjaramoodu mass murder case, tried to kill himself in prison on Sunday. He attempted to hang himself in the prison toilet using a 'mundu' (a cloth garment). He has now been moved to Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital, where he is currently receiving treatment.

This incident happened soon after the police filed the first charge sheet in the mass murder case on Friday. This document, given to the Nedumangad Second Class Magistrate Court, is about the murder of Afan’s grandmother, Salma Beevi, who was 91.

The terrible events took place on February 24, Afan, brutally killed five people — four of them his own family members — across three locations in and around the state capital. A sixth victim, his mother Shemi, survived the attack with severe injuries.

The victims were identified as Afan’s 13-year-old brother Afsan, his grandmother Salma Beevi (91), his uncle Abdul Latheef, his aunt Shahida, and his girlfriend Farsana. Police said all the victims bore fatal injuries from a hammer and sharp weapons, with the killings carried out in a similarly brutal fashion.

FILE | The mortal remains of Afsan, who was murdered by his brother Afan, kept for public homage at Perumala Junction near his house near Venjaramoodu in Thiruvananthapuram

The crime scenes spanned three locations — Peramala in Venjaramoodu, S N Puram, and Pangode. At the family home in Peramala, the bodies of Afsan and Farsana were found in separate rooms, each locked from the outside. In S N Puram, Latheef and Shahida were discovered dead, while Salma Beevi was found murdered at her residence in Pangode. Farsana’s body was found seated on a chair, her face mutilated beyond recognition — a detail that shocked even seasoned investigators.

Locals said they heard no cries for help, and many recalled Afan riding a bike through the neighbourhood around 4:30 pm that day, greeting people casually — showing no signs of the massacre that had just unfolded.

Later that evening, Afan surrendered at the Venjaramoodu police station and confessed to killing six people. Initially met with disbelief, his account was soon verified when officers, prompted by his statement, discovered the bodies.

(With inputs from Online Desk)