Santhanpara (Kerala): The owner of a resort here in Idukki district has released a WhatsApp video confessing to have murdered a man whose partially burnt body was recovered near a pit by the police on Thursday.
The incident came to light when a police team, acting on a tip-off, recovered the body of a 31-year-old.
In the WhatsApp video, the resort owner Wasim, a native of Thrissur, confessed to have murdered Rijosh, a native of Santhanpara. The police are on the lookout for Rijosh’s wife Liji and Wasim, manager of the resort.
Wasim said that nobody else was involved in the crime and requested that his brother and friend be left alone. Wasim had sent the video to his brother, who handed it over to the investigation team.
Rijosh was reported missing since last Thursday. His burnt body was found buried near the resort one week later. Rijosh’s wife Liji told police that her husband left the house stating that he was going to Ernakulam but never returned.
In her statement given to police, Liji said that Rijosh had called her on the phone from Thrissur and Kozhikode. Based on Liji’s statements, the police investigated about the phone calls and identified its owners. The probe revealed that Liji’s statements were false.
This became a turning point in the case. Following this, both Liji and Wasim went underground. Later, police received information that the soil in an area near the resort had been moved. A police team held inspections at the spot.
On Thursday, the police dug up the burnt body of Rijosh from the spot. The body has been sent to the Kottayam medical college for autopsy.
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