Kerala: Man kills wife with help of lover

Kerala man killed wife with his lover and dumped the body in an isolated place. It was a planned murder. Both have been remanded in judicial custody.

Kochi: A man from Kerala and his lover have been arrested for allegedly killing his wife and dumping her body in Tamil Nadu three months ago, police said here on Tuesday.

Vidya was allegedly killed by Premkumar and his lover Sunitha Baby at a villa in Peyad in Thiruvananthapuram on September 21 and her body was dumped in an isolated place in Tirunelveli.

Both Premkumar and Sunitha had planned the murder. After killing her in the early hours of September 21, both took Vidya's body in a car in a sitting position to Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu.

Premkumar drove the car while Sunitha sat next to the body in the back seat and they dumped the corpse in an isolated place on the side of a highway in Valliyoor in Tirunelveli.

Vidya was allegedly given liquor before she was strangled to death using a rope.

Sunitha had roles in planning the murder of Vidya and later dumping the body.

A custodial interrogation is required to ascertain whether she had also joined Premkumar in executing the murder.

To divert the attention of the police, Vidya's mobile the phone was switched on and dumped in the dustbin near the toilet of the Netravati Express by the two accused before they lodged a missing complaint in Udayamperoor in Ernakulam district on September 22.

Police immediately tried to locate Vidya's mobile with the help of cyber cell but it was traced somewhere in Karnataka.

Vidya was taken to the villa in Thiruvananthapuram on the pretext of providing her ayurvedic treatment.

Police said the movements of the accused after the killing was suspicious and turned the focus of the investigation on their role in the killing of Vidya after Prem Kumar approached the court seeking anticipatory bail, accusing the police of harassment.

He moved the court seeking anticipatory bail after police summoned him to clear some doubts over the woman going missing.

Both have been remanded in judicial custody.

Premkumar and Vidya had been living in a rented home near Tripunithura under Udayamperoor police station limit.

Premkumar and Sunitha were schoolmates in Thiruvananthapuram and they met again recently during a reunion organised in their school some time ago.

Vidya was said to be opposed to Premkumar's alleged proximity to Sunitha and both decided to avoid her leading to the killing.