Thiruvananthapuram: The Additional Sessions Court on Monday found Cadell Jeansen Raja, the sole accused in the Nanthancode quadruple murder case, guilty of murdering four people, including his parents and sister. The quantum of sentence will be pronounced on Tuesday.

The horrific incident took place on April 5 and 6 2017, when Cadell Jeansen Raja's parents, Prof Raja Thankam (60) and Dr Jean Padma (58), his sister Caroline (26), and his aunt Lalitha (70), were found brutally murdered at house number 117 in Baines Compound, near Cliff House.

According to officials, Cadell used a hatchet to kill the four victims and later burned the bodies of three in the bathroom. One body was found wrapped in bed sheets inside the house. After committing the murders, the accused fled to Chennai. However, police nabbed him on April 10.

Initially, the accused, who had returned from Australia, told the police that the deaths occurred while he was experimenting with Astral Projection, a process in which the soul separates from the body and traverses the astral plane. He later revised his statement, admitting that he murdered the victims over a family dispute.

Doctors testified that Cadell's mental state was severely impaired, but the police maintain in the charge sheet that the murders were premeditated. He was admitted to a psychiatric care centre and detained while awaiting further hearings.

During the hearing at the Additional Sessions Court, a police official revealed that Cadell Jeansen Raja had practised the crime on dummies several times before carrying it out. 

"He created dummies of his parents and experimented on them a few days before the murders. There is also evidence on his laptop showing that Cadell learned how to slit throats using an axe by watching videos on social media," said the official. The accused is currently housed in Poojapura Central Jail.