Thrissur: A 54-year-old man, Radhakrishnan, was arrested on Thursday on charges of bludgeoning his 89-year-old father to death over a long-standing property dispute. The father, Krishnan, of Poliyedath Parambil House, Madavakkara, was found dead in his home around 10 am on July 21. 

Radhakrishnan is Krishnan's younger son, who lived with his family on a neighbouring property.

The murder came to light after Krishnan's elder son, Muralidharan, who lives in Chengaloor, was unable to contact his father by phone. When he reached the house, he noticed a foul smell from the locked residence and alerted the Pudukkad police. Officers forced open the house and found Krishnan's body.

A postmortem examination later confirmed that the victim had suffered a deep head injury, establishing that the death was a homicide.

According to the police, a scientific investigation led the special investigation team to identify Radhakrishnan as the prime suspect. Investigators said the father and son had been estranged due to a property dispute. A court had directed Radhakrishnan to pay ₹3,000 as maintenance to his father. After he allegedly failed to comply with the order, his property was attached by the court, which investigators believe fuelled his resentment.

On the day of the incident, Radhakrishnan left his home claiming he was going out to distribute newspapers, entered his father's house through the upper floor, and fatally assaulted him with a hammer, police said.

During interrogation, the accused allegedly confessed to the crime. Police later recovered the blood-stained hammer from Radhakrishnan's residence.