SALEM: The murder of the security guard at late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's sprawling Kodanad estate is turning curiouser and curiouser, after a former driver at the estate, the prime suspect, was killed in an accident on Friday night, and his associate from Kerala also met with an accident in Palakkad in which his young wife and daughter were killed.
Nilgiris police had detained five persons in connection with the murder of the guard at Kodanad estate, and were on the look out for C Kanagaraj (36) from Edappadi in Salem, who once worked at the estate as a driver.
Meanwhile at Attur in Salem, local police received alert about a road traffic accident at around 9 pm on Friday. A man on bike was hit by a car on Salem-Chennai National Highway, killing the biker on the spot. The body was sent to Attur Government Hospital for postmortem examination, and efforts were taken to identify the deceased.
"Initially, we were not aware that the accident victim was the prime suspect in the guard murder case. He came to his village on Friday in a car. Last night, he was on his way to his aunt's house at Thalaivasal, allegedly driving in an inebriated stage. As he was crossing the highway to reach service road, the car hit the bike, killing him on the spot. The car driver claimed he drove the bike negligently," an official with Attur police told Express.
The deceased is a relative of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister ‘Edappadi’ K Palanisami, but they haven’t had a cordial relationship for the past six years, said C Dhanapal, brother of Kanagaraj.
The police registered case under Section 279 (rash driving) and 304 (cause death by negligence) of IPC and detained car driver for investigations.
Midnight on Friday, Gobichettipalayam inspector Balamurali now on special duty at Kodanad estate, came to the Attur Government Hospital and identified the accused, sources added.
Meanwhile, Sayan KV, an accomplice of Kanakraj was seriously injured and his wife and daughter were killed when the car in which they were travelling met with an accident at Kannadi in Palakkad.
Sayan, son of Velu KG, Koonakampally house, Edakkulam, Thrissur was driving the car, said the Palakkad South traffic police.
Sayan who was critically injured has been admitted to a hospital in Coimbatore. He reportedly works in a bakery in Coimbatore.
The car which was proceeding from Coimbatore to Thrissur rammed into a stationary fish container truck at 5.30 am on Saturday. The truck which had developed a technical snag was parked near a workshop for repair. The driver and cleaner of the lorry were sleeping atop the vehicle when the accident occurred. Vinupriya (30), Sayan’s wife and their daughter Neethu (6) were killed in the accident.
The police are also probing the murder angle as both Vinupriya and Neethu reportedly have deep cuts on their necks.
The police are currently are investigating whether Sayan wantonly hit the stationary truck or if someone was following him and therefore was speeding on the Highway.
The car which met with the accident is suspected to have been used in the robbery at the Kodanad estate, said police.