Another witness turns hostile in Koodathayi case

Kozhikode: In a notable development in the Koodathayi murder case, a witness turned hostile and changed her testimony in favour of the accused, Jolly Joseph. 

Jipsy, the wife of Maikavu native Surendran, changed their testimony in favour of the accused, marking the fifth witness to turn hostile in the ongoing trial proceedings in the murder of Roy Thomas. 

Initially, Jipsy had accused her husband of delivering cyanide to a jewellery workshop owned by the third accused, Praji Kumar. She also issued a statement claiming she saw the second accused, M.S. Mathew, at the shop. However she retracted her statement and the court accepted the prosecution's request to declare her as hostile. 

In a span of 14 years, six members of a family at Koodathayi in Kozhikode district were killed under similar circumstances. A retired employee of education department Ponnamattam Tom Thomas, wife retd. teacher Annamma, son Roy Thomas, Annamma’s brother Mathew Manchadi, Tom Thomas’ nephew’s wife Sili, her one-year-old daughter Alphine had died in similar circumstances, but years apart. Later Roy Thomas' wife Jolly and Sili's husband Shaju got married.

Jolly, her friend Mathew M S, a jewellery employee and Mathew’s friend Prajikumar were later arrested by the police. Mathew and Prajikumar were arrested for allegedly delivering cyanide to Jolly for the murders.