Drug addict keeps elderly woman captive for five hours; steals gold chain, cash
Arun warned Soma that he would kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone.
Arun warned Soma that he would kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone.
Arun warned Soma that he would kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone.
Kottayam: A 65-year-old widow living alone has filed a police complaint against an acquaintance addicted to drugs for keeping her captive for five hours and stealing a gold chain weighing three sovereigns and cash amounting to Rs 1,250. After receiving the complaint from the victim, Soma Jose, wife of the late K C Jose, of Koyithara, Mallussery, the police have launched a search for the accused, Arun Babu, a habitual offender.
Arun kept Soma captive in her house from 7 pm to midnight on Monday. According to Soma, she has been staying alone in the house since the death of her husband, as both her daughters are in Germany. “On Monday evening, Arun came to my house and asked for Rs 100. I knew Arun and his family, as they used to stay in our locality and I said I would give him Rs 50. Then, I went inside the house to switch off a motor and open a tap in the washroom, when he suddenly followed me indoors and placed a knife on my neck,” she told the police.
“When I screamed, he slapped me on both cheeks, and scraped the knife over my right hand, causing an injury. He then took me to another room inside the house and tied a cloth around my neck. He also sealed my mouth with plaster,” said Soma.
Arun smoked ganja after tying her up. He then took the gold necklace from Soma’s neck, and when she told him that it had her ‘taali’ (ceremonial pendant worn by married women), he detached the pendant and returned it to her, keeping the chain with him. He also took the cash in a purse kept in the cupboard.
Arun warned Soma that he would kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone. When Soma pleaded with him to spare her life, Arun partially untied the knot on her neck around midnight and left the house.
Soma stayed indoors the entire night, fearing the presence of Arun near the house, and informed neighbours about the incident only in the morning. Sometime later, she reached the Gandhi Nagar police station along with a relative and filed the complaint.