Nedumangad SC/ST Court Convicts 11 Accused in Sudheesh Murder Case
The Special SC/ST Court in Nedumangad has convicted all 11 accused in the murder of Sudheesh, a youth in Pothencode, four years ago. The court will pronounce the sentence on Wednesday.
The gruesome incident, which garnered public attention, involved one of the accused severing the victim’s leg and throwing it on the road in broad daylight.
The gang, led by Sudheesh Unni, Shyam Kumar, Rajesh, Nidheesh, Nandeesh, Renjith, Sreenath, Suraj, Arun, Jishnu, and Sachin, murdered 32-year-old Sudheesh, who hailed from Lakshamveedu Colony in Chembakamangalam, near Kalloor in Pothencode, on December 11, 2021.
The prosecution, led by public prosecutor T. Geena Kumari, stated that the crime was rooted in personal enmity due to a gang rivalry in the region. The attack was orchestrated in retaliation against Sudheesh, who had earlier attacked Sudheesh Unni and his family members. In a horrific act of revenge, the gang, led by Ottakam Rakesh, tracked down the victim and attacked him with lethal weapons in the presence of his relatives.
Sudheesh Unni, the prime accused, then chopped off the victim’s leg and threw it on the road before fleeing. Ottakam Rajesh, a hardened criminal with a record of involvement in multiple murder cases, was identified as the mastermind behind the meticulously planned murder.
Following the murder, Rajesh went into hiding, frequently changing locations from Kanyakumari to Palani as he contacted his relatives and friends using the mobile phones of acquaintances he met while on the run. Despite such challenges, the Pothencode police traced over 100 call data records and tower locations to eventually zero in on his whereabouts. A breakthrough came when the accused used a borrowed phone at a medical store in Palani.
During the hunt for the accused, a 27-year-old civil police officer, S. Balu, drowned after a country boat carrying him and a few others capsized in the Anjuthengu lake near Vakkom, where Rajesh was believed to be hiding.
The investigation team, led by then Nedumangad DySP M.K. Zulfikar, submitted the final chargesheet within 88 days. The prosecution faced considerable hurdles during the trial after several eyewitnesses turned hostile. However, crucial scientific evidence, including CCTV footage, proved instrumental in proving the crime.
Reference : https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/all-11-accused-found-guilty-in-2021-pothencode-sudheesh-murder-case-scst-court-to-pronounce-quantum-of-sentence-on-wednesday/article69505522.ece
