Salem boy’s ‘mercy killing’: Father, 2 others held

The deceased Vannatamil, 11, the younger son of Periasamy, 47, a lorry driver from Katchupalli in Konganapuram was suffering from cancerous tumour in his legs over the last two years. His health condition began to deteriorate day by day and the boy became fragile due to the health complications despite treatment.

Not wanting to see his son writhing in pain, Periasamy conceived the plan to mercy kill his son. He bought the lethal injection from a pharmaceuticals run by Venkadesan and administered it to his son with the help of a lab assistant Prabhu.

The family members had then made arrangements to cremate the body of the boy. However, neighbours, who came to know of his sudden death, grew suspicious and informed the Konganapuram police. During initial rounds of inquiries, Periasamy pretended to be ignorant, however later confessed to the offence.

Based on his confession, the police also arrested lab assistant Prabhu and medical shop owner Venkadesan. Samples have been collected from the trio for COVID-19 test before producing them in a court for remand.