In a shocking crime from Tamil Nadu's Salem district, a young man has been arrested for allegedly murdering his paramour and disposing of her body in a deep gorge in the Yercaud hills. The Yercaud police, after a swift investigation, apprehended the accused and recovered the victim's body with the help of forest and fire department teams.
The Disappearance and the Chilling Clue
The incident dates back to December 23, when 25-year-old Sumathi, a resident of Maramangalam village, went missing. Her husband, Shanmugam, a truck driver, searched for her but found no trace. The couple had reportedly not been living together for the past two years, with Shanmugam taking care of their two children. Unable to locate her, he filed a formal complaint with the Yercaud police on December 25.
The investigation took a macabre turn when Shanmugam received a parcel. This package, couriered from the neighbouring Kotachedu village, was sent by the prime suspect, G Venkatesh, aged 22, also from Maramangalam. Upon opening it, Shanmugam was horrified to find his wife's mangalsutra inside. He immediately informed the police, accusing Venkatesh of being involved in his wife's disappearance.
Confession and the Gruesome Act
The police questioned Venkatesh on Monday. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime and revealed a tragic sequence of events. Venkatesh admitted to being in an illicit relationship with Sumathi. He stated that on the afternoon of December 23, he met her in a garden area in Yercaud.
An argument erupted between them when Sumathi received a phone call and refused to tell Venkatesh who was calling. In a fit of rage, Venkatesh strangled Sumathi using her own dupatta. Panicked after the act, he placed her body in a bag, transported it on his two-wheeler, and drove to the Yercaud-Kuppanur ghat road. There, he threw the bag containing the body into a 300-foot-deep gorge.
Body Recovery and Legal Proceedings
Based on Venkatesh's confession, the police launched a recovery operation on Monday evening. With support from forest and fire and rescue services personnel, they retrieved Sumathi's body from the treacherous gorge. The body was then sent to the Salem Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College and Hospital for a postmortem examination.
The Yercaud police have arrested G Venkatesh and charged him with murder. The case highlights the grim consequences of a relationship that turned deadly, leaving a family shattered and a community in shock.
