The accused couple Laila and Bhagavant Singh
In recent years, Kerala has witnessed a series of brutal and distressing killings that shook the entire state and reverberated across the nation.
Now another gruesome incident has been reported where two women in the state were allegedly abducted, killed, and buried as part of a suspected 'witchcraft ritual' to gain financial prosperity in the Pathanamthitta district.
As per the media reports, an agent from Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district smuggled women from Kaladi and Kadavantra localities for a couple in Thiruvalla in Pathanamthitta district. The agent named Shafi and the couple -- identified as Vaidyan Bhagawal Singh and Laila -- have been arrested for performing ritualistic human sacrifice.
Police said Mohammed Shafi had convinced Bhagavant Singh and Laila that conducting human sacrifice will bring prosperity to the family. Shafi is a resident of SRM Road in Kochi. Padma, who was a lottery agent in Kadavantra, had gone missing on September 27 and the police had launched a search for her. Roslin had gone missing in June.
The victims had gone missing in September and June this year, respectively, and the subsequent probe has led to the shocking story of human sacrifice in the state.
After the human sacrifice, the bodies of both were buried. The police have received information about the whereabouts and the body of one of them has been found. The process of finding the second body is in progress.
''During our investigation regarding the missing woman from Kadavanthara, we came to know that she was killed in that couple's house in Thiruvalla and her body was buried after being cut into pieces there. It was a human sacrifice for the financial benefit of that couple,'' Kochi City Police Commissioner Nagaraju Chakilam told PTI.
On further interrogation, it was also found that this was not the lone case but another woman was also ''sacrificed'' similarly in the same house in June.
The senior officer said the trio is under custody now and a police team would soon reach Thiruvalla to exhume the bodies of the deceased women.
''The bodies are not in one shape...they have been made into pieces and buried,'' he said.
Further details can be divulged after the exhumation, inquest, and post-mortem procedures, IG (south zone) P Prakash said.
''Prima facie, it was a case of murder for financial gains through black magic and human sacrifice. Police will look into all aspects and details,'' he added.