Thrissur Police arrested Amith Urang, a 24-year-old man from Dibrugarh district, Assam, in connection with the brutal murder of Vijayakumar (64), a businessman who owned the Indraprastham auditorium, and his wife Dr. Meera Vijayakumar (60). The couple was murdered on Tuesday morning, with Urang allegedly carrying out the crime as an act of revenge.
Urang, who had worked as a staff member for Vijayakumar, was dismissed from his job due to misconduct. After being let go, he resorted to online fraud, swindling approximately Rs2.75 lakh from the businessman’s accounts. This led to a complaint from Vijayakumar, after which Urang was arrested but later released on bail earlier this month. Police say Urang harbored a grudge against the couple and killed them as revenge for reporting his fraudulent activities.
The murder took place around 9:30 am on Tuesday. According to the police investigation, Urang attempted to erase numbers from the Google account on Vijayakumar’s phone after the crime. His movements were traced via a call made from a stolen phone, and fingerprints found on the axe used in the murder helped investigators identify him as the culprit. Additionally, CCTV footage also played a crucial role in tracking down the suspect.
After the murder, Urang fled to Mala in Thrissur district, where he stayed at a poultry farm. He took a bus from Kottayam to reach his destination. His presence at a lodge near Kottayam railway station, where he stayed from Saturday, was confirmed after the lodge manager reported a suspicious guest with blood stains on his shirt. The manager’s testimony and CCTV footage at the lodge helped the police track him down.
Following his arrest, police recovered 11 stolen phones from Urang, including several from Vijayakumar’s house. In addition, the missing DVR of the CCTV in Vijayakumar’s house was discovered in a canal near the property.
Urang described how he carried out the crime: He entered the Vijayakumar household after 10 pm on Monday, jumping over the compound wall and unscrewing a window to create an entry. He then used an axe kept in the outhouse to kill the couple.
Interestingly, Vijayakumar’s son, Gautham, had died under mysterious circumstances seven years ago, adding a layer of tragedy to the family’s history. The couple’s daughter, Gayathri, resides in the US and is expected to return to Kerala by Friday. The family plans to hold the funeral after her arrival.
