WhatsApp message helps cop nab suspect wanted in double murder

CHENNAI: Eight years after a man allegedly murdered his pregnant wife and her 7-year-old half son in Washermenpet, Chennai police have tracked and arrested the accused on Monday.

Two notices, in Tamil and Telugu, which were circulated among WhatsApp groups of masons, construction labourers, local police groups in Sullurpeta, villages bordering AP-TN border, helped the police to track the suspect, identified as K Raju alias Danger (45), police said here.

Raju a native of Mannar Polur in Andhra Pradesh, was living in VOC Nagar in Washermenpet and was working as a construction labourer in Chennai. After his wife left him due to misunderstanding, in 2014, Raju developed an affair with M Gunasundari, a widow who lived in the same locality.

Gunasundari, then had a seven-year-old son, Mahesh Kumar. Eight years ago, the duo got married and lived together. In November 2014, Gunasundari was five months pregnant and on November 15, after a domestic quarrel Raju had stabbed his mother-in-law, his wife and her son. While Gunasundari and Mahesh Kumar died in the hospital, his mother-in-law survived the attack, said police.

Police reopened the case and recently tracked the accused after making enquiries and found that his relatives were living in and around Sullurupeta in Andhra Pradesh.

Labourers who worked under the accused informed the police, after seeing the image on Whatsapp. Subsequently, Raju who was living in Sathyavedu village, 35 kms from Sullurpet was arrested by the police. Raju had married a 21-year-old woman and was living with her.

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