SALEM: A brutal murder of an 80-year-old woman, who resided near Sangagiri, Salem district, has come to light nearly two weeks after the crime. Her mutilated body was unearthed near the Pavalathanoor Lake in Tharamangalam on Friday amid a police probe into her disappearance.
Chinnaponnu was allegedly murdered by her neighbour, a cattle dealer, Yelumalai (40), on July 23 and robbed of her gold ornaments. He later dumped her mutilated body near the lake.
She lived alone in her house in Vaikundam, Sangagiri, and was engaged in small-scale farming to sustain herself.
Chinnaponnu had asked Yelumalai to help her buy a new cow. On the evening of July 23, Yelumalai told Chinnaponnu that a cow was available for sale in Konganapuram and offered to take her there.
Under that pretext, he allegedly lured her to an isolated location, where he murdered her. He beheaded her, severed her arms, wrapped the body in a sack, and disposed of it near a lake in Tharamangalam, said police sources.
Yelumalai returned home the same night.
When Chinnaponnu's son, Mathiyalagan (57), enquired about his mother's whereabouts, Yelumalai told him that she had left Konganapuram by bus to Magudanchavadi where her daughter resides. However, the daughter denied this.
Mathiyalagan filed a missing person complaint at Konganapuram Police Station on July 24. As the case fell outside their jurisdiction, Konganapuram police transferred the complaint to Sangagiri Police Station the same night around 10:30 pm.
An FIR was registered on July 25, and a special team was formed to investigate.
During the inquiry, Yelumalai reportedly confessed to the murder and robbery. Based on his statement, the police located Chinnaponnu's body near the Pavalathanoor Lake in Tharamangalam on August 1. The body was sent to the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College Hospital for postmortem.
Chinnaponnu was wearing gold jewellery weighing about 6.5 sovereigns.
Yelumalai's arrest is yet to be registered, police said.
Further investigation is underway.