Days after the murder of a 44-year-old woman, who was found buried underneath a mud stove in her neighbour’s kitchen came to light, the Kerala police have revealed further details in the case. The police said that the accused, 48-year-old Manikkunel Benoy, admitted that he had buried the woman alive. The police said that they also collected further evidence related to the murder of Thamadathil Sindhu Babu, who had initially gone missing on August 12. Benoy was arrested on Monday, September 6, at Perinchamkutty Bamboo plantation in Idukki. According to Idukki Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Immanuel Paul, the accused committed a pre-planned crime.
According to the official, Benoy and Sindhu had quarreled on August 11, following which he strangled her until she lost consciousness. The police said that the accused initially believed that Sindhu had died then, and planned to bury her body in a pit behind his house. He allegedly poured kerosene on her and set her on fire, due to which she cried out loudly. The police said that it was after this, that he decided to bury her inside the house. The DSP further added that Sindhu might have still been alive when she was buried, as the accused told the police that her leg was moving as he filled up the pit with mud. “To ensure her death, he covered her face with a plastic cover,” the DSP said.
Speaking about the motive, a police official said, "Recently, Sindhu contacted and visited her ex-husband at Kottayam and Benoy, who learnt about this, was angry and asked her to return immediately. He also tried to hang her son, and upon hearing the child cry through the phone, she returned immediately. Based on the complaint of the family, we have registered an additional charge of attempt to murder against the accused,” a police official said.
The case first came to light after Sindhu’s family filed a police complaint with the Vellathooval police station in Kozhikode district. Sindhu was missing from August 12 and Benoy was absconding from August 16, following which the police began the investigation. The body of Sindhu was exhumed from the kitchen of Benoy’s house at Panickankudy on Saturday, after her relatives found the body on Friday.
Sindhu was living in a rented house with her 12-year-old son in Panickankudy after separating from her husband six years ago. She later got close with her neighbour Benoy and moved into his house. She was killed on August 11, when the boy was sent to a relative’s home, police said. Officials added that her son reached the house on August 12 and realised that Sindhu was missing, following which he informed her relatives.
The primary postmortem report stated that Sindhu was strangled to death. There were signs of serious assault on the body. One rib was broken and there were several injury marks on the body. After a long search, the police on Monday arrested Benoy from Perinchamkutty Bamboo plantation in Idukki. The police also said that the accused planned to reconstruct the house in a bid to get rid of further evidence.