Five men were arrested on Friday, February 16, a day after the murder of Sakthivel, BJP OBC Wing district secretary for Madurai, police told TNM. The accused have been identified as Marthupandian, Ranjith, Akhgilan, Akash and Thennarasu. Sakthivel (35) was brutally chased and hacked to death early in the morning on February 15 while he was riding his two-wheeler.
Stating that there is no political angle to the murder, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) A Soorakumaran told TNM that Maruthpandian and Ranjith had previously been employed by Sakthivel and they owed him money. Since Sakthivel attempted to intimidate them into paying him back, Ranjith and Maruthpandian committed the murder in retaliation. A murder case section 302 has been duly registered, the ACP added.
According to reports, Sakthivel was attacked at around 6 am near the Vandiyur toll gate while on the way to his godown in Sangu Nagar. The assailants, who were also on two wheelers, chased Sakthivel even as he attempted to escape and hacked him to death. By the time police arrived, the accused fled from the spot. Anna Nagar police were notified by passersby who discovered Sakthivel’s body.