Tirur: As the probe into the crime and evidence-gathering intensified, details of the brutal murder of the Tirur-based hotelier Siddique Mechery have emerged.
The accused trio, now arrested in connection with the case, had lured Siddique into a honey trap after conspiring to extort Rs 5 lakh from him, the investigation revealed. The accused killed him in about five minutes when he resisted, the police said.
The accused are: Muhammad Shibili (22), Khadijat Farhana (19), and Ashiq (23).
Accused Farhana was the first to arrive at the hotel room in Kozhikode's Eranhipalam after Siddique had booked a room there in his name. Farhana is the daughter of an acquaintance of slain Siddique.
After Siddique joined in, both spoke for half an hour inside the room. Soon, Farhana's lover and accomplice in the crime Shibili arrived at the scene.
Shibili had earlier worked at Siddique’s restaurant in Kozhikode. The three carried on the conversation as they were acquaintances.
The scene, however, suddenly changed as the third accused, Ashiq, stormed into the room, the police added. According to the cops, the trio tried to forcibly click a nude picture of Siddique as part of the conspiracy.
Shibili pointed a knife at Siddique and demanded money. But the hotelier resisted. Farhana then took out a hammer from her bag and handed it over to Shibili who struck Siddique's head with it.
The murder happened within five minutes of Ashiq's arrival in the room, according to the police investigation.
The accused likely did not get help from anyone else in the incident, but the police will continue the investigation based on traced phone calls and other data gathered from the smart phones of the accused.
Farhana's interrogation
During the interrogation, Farhana admitted that she had asked a friend from a southern district to come to Kozhikode on the day of the incident. But he refused as he was not free, she said. He was likely unaware of the crime plot. Police sources said he could be made a witness in the case. Farhana was questioned on the basis of the information traced from the phone.
Police to seek custody
Meanwhile, the police will file applications in the court for the custody of the arrested persons.
If custody is granted, police plan to gather evidence soon by bringing the accused to the De Casa Inn at Eranjipalam Junction where Siddique was murdered; the electrical appliance shop at Pushpa Junction from where the cutter used to dismember the body was purchased; shops on SM Street from where the trolley bags to place the body parts were purchased; and Siddique's hotel at Olavanna where Shibli had worked.
Chilling crime
Siddique was murdered on May 18. The trio pinned him on the ground, hit his head with a hammer, and kicked his chest repeatedly until he died after he refused their direction to take off his clothes and pose nude for a picture with the intention of extorting money from him. The accused then chopped the body into pieces with an electric cutter before packing it in two trolley bags and dumping the same in a gorge at Agali in Attappadi. They also disposed of the electric cutter, the victim’s clothes, and other evidence materials at the secluded Cheeratta Mala, 5 km from Angadipuram in Perinthalmanna. The cops gathered evidence from the spot the other day.
