Wife, step-daughter held in connection with man’s murder

Madurai: The Madurai district police have arrested the

wife

and step-daughter in connection with the murder of a money-lender M Ilangovan, 45, from a village near Alanganallur. An armed gang barged into his house and hacked him using sharp weapons on Friday. He died at the Government Rajaji Hospital in the early hours of Saturday.

While a case was registered based on a complaint from his wife Abirami, 45, inquiry conducted by the police revealed that he was murdered by Abirami and her daughter K Anusiya, 19, by hiring a gang. A search is on for the six-member gang, aged between 17 and 20 years.

Police sources said that Ilangovan, a former history-sheeter, settled in Rameswaram village near T Vadipattti, a few years ago. He was into farming and moneylending. He got married to Abirami 10 years ago after the death of his first wife Packialakshmi. He had two sons and a daughter through his first wife, whereas Abirami was a mother of two daughters, when she married Ilangovan.

Inquiries with the women revealed that Ilangovan tried to misbehave with his step-daughter, who was married to one Joseph a couple of years ago. As the information reached Joseph, he along with his accomplices tried to murder Ilangovan last year. He survived the attacked then. However, he continued to sexually harass his step-daughter.

The mother and daughter connived to eliminated Ilangovan. They got in touch with a gang from Sellur and planned the murder. Abirami and her daughter left the house on the day of murder, after informing Ilangovan that they were going to the city on some work. As they left, the gang staged the attack and left.

A police officer said that a CCTV camera footage of the gang attacking the victim has been recovered and based on which the accused have been identified. They will be arrested in a day or two, he said.