TIRUCHY: A 61-year-old woman was murdered by her neighbour in Thiruverumbur on Thursday, while trying to steal a nine-sovereign gold chain. Thiruverumbur Police arrested the accused woman and her son, after finding that she had allegedly killed the old lady at the former’s home and then dragged the body all the way to the victim’s house located a few blocks away in the wee hours of Thursday.
Police said S Muthulakshmi, a resident of Vengoor Road in Varriyar Nagar, was living with her daughters in the locality. Muthulakshmi was involved in lending money to people in the area, including neighbour Revathi (43), the accused in the case.
Revathi regularly took money from Muthulakshmi to tide over financial crisis, but never paid back in time. Revathi tried to borrow money from Muthulakshmi recently, but the 61-year-old refused to lend any cash.
Upset over this, Revathi plotted to abduct Muthulakshmi. On Wednesday, when Muthulakshmi was alone at home, Revathi is said to have invited Muthulakshmi to her house. There, Revathi, in a fit of rage, used chemical-laced cloth to smother he. Her son, a Class IX student, also hit Muthulakshmi with a piece of wood, and allegedly murdered her.
Revathi then wrapped the body in a bed sheet and rolled it under the bed. Meanwhile, Muthulakshmi’s family, unaware of her whereabouts, informed her sister Inbavalli about how he went missing.
Early on Thursday morning, as Inbavalli was sitting outside, she saw Revathi and her son trying to carry a gunny bag wrapped in a sheet. On seeing Inbavalli, they abandoned the bag and fled. On inspection, Inbavalli found Muthulakshmi’s body.