Kasaragod: A rubber tapper was found murdered in an old ancestral house at Yelkana, a village bordering Karnataka, in Kasaragod's Enmakaje panchayat Wednesday evening.

The victim has been identified as Neethu Krishnan (32), daughter of Radhakrishnan of Kottiyam in Kollam district.

Her husband, Anto Sebastian (40) of Kalpetta in Wayanad, is the main suspect, said Badiadka sub-inspector Vinod Kumar. He is on the run.

The body, found wrapped in a cloth, had decomposed and the entire area had a foul smell, said Enmakaje panchayat president Somashekhara J S, who visited the house.

The sub-inspector said Neethu could have been hit on the head and killed.

The couple was employed by Rijo Joseph, a resident of Kottayam, in his three-acre rubber plantation at Yelkana. They were living in the 'Nalukettu' house as caretakers. "They came here 42 days ago," said Vinod Kumar.

According to workers of the estate, Neethu was last seen on Friday. "Anto told workers that she had gone home," said the officer.

On Monday, Anto also left. By Wednesday evening, the smell of death permeated through the wall of the house and filled the neighbourhood air.

A worker climbed the roof, removed the tiles, and peeped inside. He immediately called in the Badiadka Police. The body has been sent for postmortem at Kannur Government Medical College Hospital at Pariyaram.

Police said Neethu was Anto's third wife and Anto was Neethu's second husband. "The workers said they were not very happy with each other and used to frequently fight," said the officer.

But the police have few details about Anto. Neethu has a daughter from her previous marriage. The girl lives with her maternal grandfather.