Man’s body dumped in Cooum riverbed: Wife, paramour held

The deceased, Kumar (40), hailed from Sankarapuram in Villupuram district. He was married to Selvi (30) and the couple has two sons and a daughter. While the police were initially investigating if Kumar drowned in the Cooum river, they received a tip-off from a brick kiln owner. He reportedly told the police that his workers blurted out under the influence of alcohol that the man found in the riverbed was murdered by them. Following this, the Thiruninravur police interrogated Manikandan and a few others who confessed to the murder that took place on January 10.

The police said that Selvi and Manikandan (20) developed a relationship when Kumar’s family used to live in Thiruninravur. Kumar came to know about this and warned them. Then, he shifted to Guduvanchery with family after getting a job as security guard there. However, Selvi and Manikandan continued their relationship and Kumar confronted them again.

Frustrated over this, Selvi and Manikandan planned to eliminate Kumar. “On the night of January 10, Selvi mixed poison in payasam and gave it to Kumar. After Kumar fell unconscious, Manikandan and his co-workers, Boominathan, Ayyanar and one more person, who were waiting in Guduvanchery went to his house and strangulated him to death with a nylon rope, said the police.

They later carried his body on a bike all the way to Thiruninravur and buried it on the Cooum riverbed near Kosavanpalayam, they added. The police arrested Selvi, Manikandan, Boominathan and Ayyanar and remanded them in judicial custody on Tuesday.