TIRUCHY: Lure of big returns drew a businessman to run huge debts, resulting in him killing his family before committing suicide. A suicide note was recovered in which he named four persons who drove him to the extreme step. One of them has been arrested in connection with the incident.
According to Srirangam police, the house of S Vishwanathan (35) a footwear dealer, is located in Nelson Street, Thiruvanaikaval. On Tuesday, he, his wife V Deivayanai (34) and children V Gunasekaran (9) and 18-month-old Nishanthini were found dead in the house. Vishwanathan was found hanging in the hall of the single bedroom apartment, while the bodies of others were in the bedroom. They had been poisoned and strangulated.
What intrigued the probe team was that turmeric solution and pesticide was sprinkled all around the place and the corpses were smeared with turmeric paste. Also, the bodies were neatly laid down with pillows under their heads. The deaths came to light when Vishwanathan’s relatives who live in the neighbourhood did not get any response when they called on him. When they peeped through the window, they saw Vishwanathan’s body hanging from the ceiling and informed the police.
According to Vishwanathan’s sister, the family committed suicide due to heavy debt. A woman, named Sangeetha, is alleged to have borrowed `1 crore from Vishwanathan under the pretext of starting a dance school and promised huge interest. According to the police, the woman is from Thiruverumbur and got in touch with Vishwanathan through a broker. The family members claimed to have seen Sangeetha in the locality several times. But after she received the cash, she made herself scarce.
Based on the suicide note and information given by Vishwanathan’s relatives, police picked up Sangeetha along with three others - her father Chandramohan, sister Subha and the broker Murugesan. Sangeetha has been arrested.