New Delhi: A murder accused, who has been absconding for the past 17 years, has been nabbed from Saudi Arabia with the help of Interpol.

Sudheesh Ramachandran (38) was wanted by the Kerala Police in a 2006 murder case registered at the Thumba police station in Thiruvanathapuram on November 30 that year. He was arrested by a team led by the Kazhakkoottam City Police Assistant Commissioner DK Prithviraj.

Ramachandran, the third accused in the case, facing an Interpol Red Notice was brought back from Saudi Arabia on Thursday in an operation coordinated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), officials said. He was working as a driver in Riyadh.

The murder case
The charge sheet states that the victim Muralidharan Nair was killed for trying to stop the accused from selling liquor and drugs. It is alleged that Ramachandran had attacked the victim and inflicted serious injuries to his head and legs. Nair succumbed to the injuries during treatment at a government hospital.

The first accused Rajendra Babu and the second accused Shainu in the Murali murder case are absconding without appearing for the trial.

As per City Police Commissioner CH Nagaraju's instructions, a team led by ACP DK Prithviraj, Thumba Station Inspector Sivakumar and Cyber ​​Police Station Senior Civil Police Officer Manikantan reached Riyadh and took Sudheesh into custody on November 18.

The Red Notice was issued against Ramachandran on May 26, 2021, on the request of the Kerala Police. The notice is issued by the Interpol on the request of a member country to detain a fugitive located in a foreign jurisdiction.

Ramachandran, who was absconding for several years, was located in Saudi Arabia by the Global Operation Centre of the CBI which was coordinating with the Interpol.

"With the close assistance of INTERPOL NCB - Riyadh, he was returned on November 23, 2023 from Saudi Arabia to India by a team from Kerala Police," according to a statement issued by the CBI. The CBI is the National Central Bureau of India responsible for coordination with the Interpol.

The decision of the city police is to speed up the trial of the case.The accused will be produced before the Sessions Court today.

(With PTI inputs.)