Kasargod: Man Accused of Killing Perla Couple Caught After 19 Years
Stephan Kayyar
Daijiworld Media Network – Kasargod
Kasargod, Apr 22: The Kannur crime branch police have arrested Imam Hussain (52), the accused in the murder case of a Perla couple. The accused was arrested near Yashwantpur, Bangalore. The murder took place 19 years ago.
Hussain who was residing in a rented house near Yashwantpur was arrested with the help of Nelamangala police. Police said that from past seven years he had been moving about under the name of 'Taj Bhai'. Hussain is married and has five daughters and a son.
Srikrishna Bhat and his wife were brutally murdered on the night of October 9, 1993. Srikrishna's body was found buried in a coconut garden pit and his wife’s body was found in the house. She had been strangled to death.
Hussain fled after murdering the couple and also took away their valuables.
The Badiyadka police failed to track down the accused and later the case was handed over to the crime branch. Police searched in Mysore, Bangalore and Sagar too, but Hussain slipped from their hands each time.
Police have now successfully cracked the case and caught the main accused with the help of Bangalore police.
19 years ago, Imam Hussain, resident of Sagar Jantakall, Shimoga had rented a room at a lodge in K S Rao Road, Mangalore and involved himself in astrology and black magic. The couple who saw advertisements about this in newspapers met him and invited him to their residence the next day. He made them believe that there was a treasure in their house and revisited them on October 9, 1993. It is learnt that he took Bhat to the garden and asked him to offer prayers at the place where the treasure was believed to be hidden and killed him with a pick axe. He then came back and strangled his wife and fled away with their valuables.
At the time of the murder the couple's three children - Muralikrishna, Niranjan and Sudarshan were studying in 6th and 7th standards.
A visiting card with his name and the lodge and a slipper provided clue of the accused.
A half-dead chicken tied up and lying in the rain in a corner at Bhat’s residence also provided a clue and placed before the court as evidence. It was said that the chicken was brought for black magic by the accused. It was taken into police custody where it died.