Pathanamthitta: The elderly man, who was found dead inside his shop at Mylapra in Pathanamthitta last evening, was brutally strangled to death during a robbery bid, the initial police probe has found.
The cops, conducting a thorough examination of the crime scene, recovered the shirt and lungi used to execute the crime. A gold chain, weighing nine sovereigns that the victim George Unnoonny (73) wore, besides the cash kept in the store, was found stolen.
A special investigation team, led by Ajith V, District Superintendent of Police (SP), and that including two DySPs, has been formed to probe the broad daylight murder.
“The preliminary investigation points towards a well-planned murder with the motive being robbery. It seems the assassin might have known the victim well. We’re collecting all the evidence, including the CCTV images from the locality,” said a senior police officer.
George, who was running a grocery store ‘Puthuvelil Stores’ near the Mylapra post office, was found dead inside his shop on Saturday afternoon. His hands and legs were tied up and a piece of cloth was stuffed into his mouth.
The shop owner used to hang a green curtain at the front portion of the shop as a shield from the sunlight before taking a short nap in the afternoons. George was found dead when his grandson came to check on him after 6 pm, when he regularly closed his shop.
The victim used to keep a substantial amount of money on hand to purchase materials for his store. The exact amount looted following the gruesome attack is yet to be ascertained. The hard disk of the store’s CCTV is also missing.
