Thrissur: After more than three decades on the run, a man accused in a 1995 murder case was finally traced by the police with the help of an old photograph and artificial intelligence. Krishna Kumar, who had changed his name, assumed a new identity and built a family life in another state, was arrested 31 years after the murder of 70-year-old Martha in Thrissur.

The murder took place on October 31, 1995, at East Fort in Thrissur. Krishna Kumar was one of the accused in the case in which gold ornaments and ₹5,000 were stolen after Martha was suffocated to death. He had absconded after securing bail. A breakthrough in the long-pending investigation came when police used Gandiva AI, an information analysis tool associated with the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID), to trace him to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh.

Martha murdered on October 31, 1995
Martha, a 70-year-old woman who lived alone at East Fort in Thrissur, was found murdered inside her house on October 31, 1995. She was the wife of an Army personnel. Gold ornaments she was wearing on her hands and neck, along with ₹5,000, were missing. She had been suffocated to death, allegedly using a pillow pressed against her face.

Prasad, then 19, from Koratty, and Krishna Kumar, then 18, from Vengassery in Ottapalam, Palakkad district, were arrested in connection with the murder. However, Krishna Kumar went into hiding after being released on bail. Although Prasad was subsequently arrested again, police failed to trace Krishna Kumar.

Investigators conducted searches at his old address in Ottapalam on several occasions over the years, but found no leads. Eventually, the court declared him a proclaimed offender.

Left home at 18 and assumed the name Kishan Kumar
After being named an accused in the murder case, Krishna Kumar left home at the age of 18 and travelled to Delhi, where his uncle Gopalakrishnan was settled.

He subsequently changed his name and family identity, adopting the name Kishan Kumar. Gopalakrishnan introduced him to local residents as his adopted son, alongside his two daughters.

Gopalakrishnan, who had previously served in the military, was working at a sugar factory in Meerut. He arranged a job for Krishna Kumar as a welder at the factory.

Living under his new identity, Krishna Kumar maintained a quiet life and earned a reputation as a polite and well-mannered person among local residents. Around 15 years ago, he married a woman from Kundara in Kollam district.

Despite building a new family and living under a different name, his identity as an accused in the 1995 murder case remained concealed.

Investigation shifts from Ottapalam to Delhi
With investigators unable to obtain any concrete leads for years, the police revived the investigation in 2022.

During inquiries at Krishna Kumar's old address in Ottapalam, police received a crucial lead from a distant female relative of his who was living in Ernakulam.

She reportedly informed investigators that Krishna Kumar's uncle, Gopalakrishnan, was living in Delhi. The investigation was subsequently shifted to Delhi and its surrounding areas.

Police continued gathering information from 2022 onwards. During the investigation, they also learnt that Gopalakrishnan had died.

Old photograph uploaded to Gandiva AI in 2025
A major breakthrough came in 2025 when police uploaded an old photograph of Krishna Kumar, taken when he was 18, to the Gandiva AI system.

The analysis reportedly generated a lead indicating that a person resembling Krishna Kumar was living in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.

Gandiva is an information analysis tool associated with NATGRID, the National Intelligence Grid under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. The system helps investigators analyse and correlate information available across multiple government databases.

Following the lead, police focused their inquiries on Malayali associations and businesses run by Malayalis in Meerut.

Investigators also used AI technology to generate an age-progressed image of Krishna Kumar based on his old photograph. The image was shown during local inquiries, helping police identify a person with a similar appearance living in the area.
Further inquiries revealed that the man had married a woman from Kollam district.

Uncle's phone leads police to his wife
During the investigation, police learnt that Gopalakrishnan's mobile phone was in the possession of his daughter after his death.

The investigation team examined the numbers and messages stored on the phone, along with call detail records (CDRs). This eventually led them to Krishna Kumar's wife, a native of Kundara.

Information obtained from the phone's location details indicated that she was in Kundara. Police subsequently conducted inquiries in the area and gathered details about the couple, including their marriage around 15 years ago.

After prolonged surveillance and scientific investigation, police finally took Krishna Kumar into custody while he was attending a wedding ceremony in Kundara.

Thrissur City Assistant Police Commissioner T.R. Rajesh said Krishna Kumar had been living with the apprehension that he could be arrested someday.

He added that advances in information technology, particularly artificial intelligence, could help investigators solve cases that had remained undetected for decades.