Thrissur: A four-member gang allegedly abducted a man from Tamil Nadu and brutally thrashed him to death at Kaippamangalam here on Monday. After murdering the man, the assailants dumped his body in an ambulance. The deceased is Arun (40), a native of Coimbatore. Arun's friend Sasankan was also attacked by the accused.
According to police, Sadiq, an ice factory owner in Kannur and his gang are behind the murder. It is suspected that a financial deal of Rs 10 lakh between Sadiq and Arun led to the crime. Arun had made Sadiq invest Rs 10 lakh in the fraudulent Rice Puller Nidhi scheme. After losing the money, Sadiq had asked Arun to meet him at a spot near Paliyekkara toll plaza in Thrissur. When Arun and Sasankan reached the spot, Sadiq and his gang abducted the duo and held them hostage at an estate in Vattanathra near Kaippamangalam. After thrashing Arun to death, they called an ambulance to abandon the body.
The ambulance driver told police that the four-member gang told him that Arun was injured in a road accident and asked him to take the man to the nearby hospital. The assailants convinced the ambulance driver that they would follow the ambulance in their car. But they managed to flee after dumping the body in the ambulance. Doctors confirmed Arun's death at the hospital. He reportedly suffered severe injuries including a nasal fracture.
The details of the crime came to light after police interrogated Arun's friend Sasankan. Police have intensified the search for the accused in Kannur and Kozhikode.
