Suspect in Kerala honour killing is a Dubai resident
abu dhabi — The main suspect in a recent honour killing case in Kerala was a Dubai resident for the last four years, Khaleej Times has learnt.
Syanu Chacko, 26, worked as an electrician in the country and left the UAE on emergency leave last Saturday — the day the crime took place.
“Syanu was hysterically crying when he called me on Saturday, requesting for an emergency leave to go home. He said his sister is missing and his father is in hospital. I immediately let him go,” the manager of the Dubai-based maintenance company told Khaleej Times. Chacko, along with several other suspects, is accused of plotting and killing 23-year-old Kevin P Joseph. Joseph had allegedly married Chacko’s sister against the family’s will, which led to the brutal murder.
After knowing and working with Chacko for four years, the manager, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he “cannot fathom” how Chacko could do such a revengeful act.
dubai — The main suspect in a rec-ent honour killing case in Kerala, which sent shockwaves across the country, was a Dubai resident for the last four years, Khaleej
Times has learnt. According to sources, he left the UAE on emergency leave last Saturday to orchestrate the chilling crime of murdering his sister’s husband. Syanu Chacko, 26, who worked as an electrician in Dubai, is under arrest in Kerala for plotting and killing Kevin P Joseph, a 23-year-old Dalit Christian who married his sister Neenu Chacko, 20, against the family’s wishes.
“Syanu was hysterically crying when he called me on Saturday, requesting for an emergency leave to go home. He said his sister is missing and his father is in hospital. I immediately let him go,” the manager of the Dubai-based maintenance company Syanu was working for, told Khaleej Times.
“I am still in a state of shock after watching the news on television channels. I have known him for four years and still cannot fathom how he could do such a revengeful act,” said the manager, requesting anonymity.
According to the police investigation, Kevin was kidnapped and tortured to death the night Syanu landed in Kerala.
Chilling crime
Kevin and Syanu’s sister Neenu were in a relationship for the last two years and her family was against it. But Kevin and the girl went ahead and applied to get their marriage registered on May 24 in Kottayam district, Kerala.
On Saturday night, a gang of men stormed into the house where Kevin was hiding with his friend Aneesh, and abducted both of them. Kevin’s body was later found in a ditch in Chaliekkara, the place close to where the girls’ family live, according to media reports. Aneesh was later freed by the gang.
The Kerala police have named Syanu as the main suspect and her father as the 14th suspect in the chilling honour killing that has sent shockwaves across Kerala, a state known for its 100 per cent literacy rate and high social development index.
The case has also put Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a spot, as the victim’s family has alleged police negligence.
A total of 14 people are accused in the abduction and murder of the Dalit Christian youth hailing from Kottayam district.
According to the reports quoting police sources, Syanu reached India from Dubai to bring his sister back home and sabotage the couple’s marriage plans.