Tamil Nadu police murder: Two key suspects arrested from Udupi

Two key suspects in the murder of Special sub-inspector Y Wilson at a check post in Kanniyakumari district on the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border last week were arrested from Udupi in Karnataka on Tuesday.

Abdul Shameem (32) and Thoufiq (28), both native of Nagercoil in Tamil Nadu and belonging to an Islamic outfit, were arrested by the Karnataka Police on Tuesday afternoon, acting on specific input from their Tamil Nadu counterparts.

“They were taken into custody on Tuesday and the duo will be handed over to the Tamil Nadu police shortly. The accused will be brought to Kanniyakumari for questioning by officials concerned,” a senior police officer told DH.

Shameem, who is an accused in the murder of a Hindu outfit leader in Chennai, and Thoufiq were arrested from the Udupi Railway Station. Both belong to an Islamic outfit and had escaped to Udupi from Kanniyakumari after committing the crime on January 8.

The murder of Wilson had sent shockwaves across Tamil Nadu and Kerala and a joint team of officials from both states were constituted to nab the accused. A stung Tamil Nadu government had promised to nab the culprits as early as possible and announced a solatium of Rs 1 crore to Wilson’s family.

Police said the duo came from Tamil Nadu side of the border and shot Wilson, killing him on the spot before fleeing in an SUV bearing registration number of TN-57-AW-1559.

“We zeroed in on Shameem and Thoufiq after scouring through the CCTV footage,” another police officer said, adding that the motive behind the duo shooting down Wilson is yet to be ascertained.

The arrest comes a day after Azaz Pasha, a member of the same terror module, was picked up from Bengaluru. Police said Pasha is directly involved in the murder of Wilson as he sourced the weapon used to kill the police officer.