Idukki: A 79-year old man killed his son and three of his family members by setting them aflame inside their house at Cheenikuzhi in Idukki distrct in the wee hours of Saturday. Property dispute is suspected to be the motive.
Those who were charred to death are Mohammed Faisal, wife Sheeba and their children Mehar, 16 and Asna, 13.
Though one of the children awoke and frantically called neighbours for help, it was too late because Hamid had locked the house from outside. Nobody could escape from the fire that engulfed them.
When the neighbours reached the house, they saw Hamid throwing a can filled with petrol to the house.
Hamid had made clear advance planning to commit the murder, police stated.
He had kept ready cans filled with petrol earlier itself for committing the crime. He had emptied water from the storage tank in the house and the nearby houses with the aim of suttling rescue operations. As a result the local people had a tough time in bringing water for rescue work. Finally after great efforts, they managed to extinguish the fire.
The police later took Hamid into custody.
