3 Kerala residents found dead in Arunachal hotel; police retrieve chats

Following the suspicious deaths of a couple and their friend who hail from Kerala, the state police have retrieved the email and chats of the victims dating back to 2021.

On April 2, Naveen Thomas (39), his wife Devi (39) and their friend Arya were found dead in a hotel room in Arunachal Pradesh. They had slash wounds on their bodies. It is rumoured that the trio died while performing a black magic ritual. However, the police have not found any such evidence so far.

Speaking to the media, P Nithin Raj Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) said “We cannot say it’s black magic. Our primary understanding is that, maybe they have been motivated by their belief system or by any materials they might have read.”

A six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Thiruvananthapuram Cantonment Superintendent are probing the case. The Arunachal Pradesh police have also constituted a special investigation team to investigate the deaths.

While Devi and Arya were natives of Vattiyoorkavu and Naveen was a resident of Kottayam. As per reports, Naveen and Devi left for Arunachal after telling their parents that they were going on a vacation. But Arya did not inform her parents about it. Subsequently, Arya’s father filed a missing case on March 27.

Meanwhile, the mortal remains of the victims were brought to Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday, April 4. Naveen’s body was taken to his home town and Devi’s and Arya’s bodies were cremated at Santhikavadam in Thycaud.