Inspector held in Sathankulam case tried all tricks to evade arrest

Shifting locations and changing vehicles, Sathankulam Inspector of Police Sridhar played hide and seek with CB-CID sleuths before being arrested in the sensational case of father-son deaths following alleged custodial torture in this southern district in Tamil Nadu.

In the end, the relentless pursuit and meticulous planning by the specialised Crime Branch-CID personnel with the help of local police helped them outwit the suspended inspector who tried to evade arrest on sensing that he was under the radar, a police official privy to the probe said.

P Jeyaraj and his son Bennicks, running a mobile phone shop, were allegedly tortured at the Sathankulam station recently under inspector Sridhar's nose and the duo later died in a hospital, triggering a nation-wide outrage and calls for strong action against the police personnel.

Amid charges of cover-up attempts, the CB-CID police took over the probe on Wednesday on the directions of the Madras High Court and arrested Sridhar, two sub-inspectors and a head-constable based on preliminary investigations and slapped murder charges.

Sridhar started shifting his location days ago after it became clear that he would be arrested in the case following suspension, the official told PTI. Initially, though the inspector had sent word that he would make himself available to the authorities for questioning, he did not turn up, the official said.

Eventually, he became evasive and shifted locations often and changed vehicles to travel. A wireless message, meanwhile, asking police personnel manning district border checkposts to be on guard to spot the accused went viral on the social media.

The photographs of the police personnel were shared with those manning the checkposts by authorities, the official said.

Though they could nab the others, several teams of the CB-CID in addition to local police units here and neighbouring districts could not spot Sridhar despite efforts and it later emerged that he had successfully given police the slip in locations, including Kayathar in this district.

After shuttling between one place to another, Sridhar finally reached neighbouring Tirunelveli on Wednesday with the alleged support of a political personality. "He did not have any intention to surrender before authorities though he claimed that it was his idea," the official said.

Based on intelligence inputs that he was leaving Tirunelveli in a "specific car," to an undisclosed location, his vehicle was intercepted early on Thursday at Gangaikondan checkpost on the highway towards Madurai.

"We tracked him, followed his car and managed to detain him at Gangaikondan and he was brought to Tuticorin," he added. Following questioning, Sridhar was arrested and later produced before the Chief Judicial Magistriate court here which remanded him to judicial custody.

Three other policemen have also been remanded. Meanwhile, a senior CB-CID official scotched speculation that constable Muthuraj, also wanted in the case, has "come forward to be an approver" in the case. The official told PTI that the claim was not true adding efforts were afoot to apprehend him.

"We will arrest Muthuraj soon," he said. A petition would be filed in a court here to take all the accused into police custody "in a couple of days," to take forward the investigation, he said.

Jeyaraj and his son Bennicks were arrested on June 19 for alleged violation of prohibitory orders in force due to Covid-19 lockdown by keeping their mobile phone shop beyond the allowed time. After being remanded to judicial custody by a magistrate next day, the two were lodged in the Kovilpatti sub-jail.

They were admitted at a government hospital in Kovilpatti by jail authorities on June 22 and died in the space of a few hours. Their family has alleged that the two were severely beaten up in the police station, which was later coroborated by a woman head constable who told a magisterial probe that the other personnel kept thrashing the father and son throughout the night.

In the backdrop of outrage against their deaths following alleged police brutality, Chief Minister K Palaniswami had on June 28 announced a CBI probe. However, pending the central agency taking over the case, the high court directed the CB-CID to step in, apprehending disappearance of evidence.