Kollam: At first, it appeared to be a normal road accident. However, with relatives questioning the death of 82-year-old retired BSNL assistant manager C Pappachan of Kollam, police have uncovered the devious plot behind the murder and arrested those involved, including the conspirators. On May 23, Pappachan died in an accident at Asramam, Kollam, when a car hit his bicycle.

During the investigation, police identified the hired gang that carried out the operation and those who plotted the murder to embezzle lakhs of rupees invested in a private finance company.

According to the police, the arrested individuals are Saritha (45), branch manager of the private financial company, K P Anoop (37), an executive at the same company, and ‘quotation gang’ members Animon (44) and Hashif (27) of Polayathode, Kollam and Mahin (47) of Kadappakkada. Saritha and Anoop planned the murder and hired Animon and Mahin to carry out the task.

Pappachan was living alone at his house in Asramam due to familial issues with his wife Matilda Daniel, a retired school teacher, and his children, Rachel and Jacob. The accused, Saritha and Anoop, were aware of his personal situation and took advantage by luring him into investing his money in their bank. By offering him higher interest rates and other benefits, they pressured him to withdraw large amounts from various bank accounts to invest in their financial institution. Saritha used the cheques provided by Pappachan to withdraw Rs 6 lakhs from his account. According to the police, the accused withdrew around Rs 70 lakhs from Pappachan’s accounts.

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The car which hit Pappachan, C Pappahan
The car which hit Pappachan, C Pappachan 

As a meticulous individual regarding his finances, Pappachan visited the company regularly and grew suspicious of Saritha and Anoop’s intentions. When he realised that Saritha was attempting to cheat him, he demanded his money back, which led the accused to plot the murder, said police.

On realising he was being cheated, Pappachan lodged a complaint with higher officials of the financial institute, who launched an investigation and found that Saritha had swindled out money from Pappachan and seven others. Since the amounts involved with others were relatively small, the company reimbursed them and asked Saritha to settle Pappachan’s case quickly or face legal action. Knowing she could not repay the money, Saritha, with Anoop’s support, plotted the murder to eliminate Pappachan.
Aware that Pappachan frequently cycled, they initially attempted to kill him using an auto rickshaw driven by Mahin. When these attempts failed, they decided to use a car and contacted Animon to hire one.

Through CCTV footage, police identified the accused. Although the plan was to kill Pappachan using the auto rickshaw on May 20, 21, and 22, the attempts failed. Consequently, they hired a blue WagonR car owned by Sajeev of Kollam. Since Sajeev was found to have no involvement in the conspiracy and murder, his name was not included in the list of accused. The accused believed that if any doubts arose regarding the accident, only the car owner would be implicated.

Cyber police collected details of phone calls between Saritha, Anoop and Animon, leading to the arrest of the accused.

On May 23, Anoop rode a bike in front of Pappachan, who was cycling near the Asramam Adventure Park, close to the Guest House. The accident occurred behind the Sree Narayana Convention Centre near Asramam in a less trafficked area. Animon drove the car that hit Pappachan and quickly fled the scene. Mahin arrived at the spot after the accident and delayed the rescue by telling those who rushed to the spot that an ambulance was on its way. The ambulance was also delayed, and by the time Pappachan reached the hospital, his condition was critical, and later he succumbed to the injuries.


 

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The accused arrested by the police: Saritha, Animon, Anoop, Mahin, Hashif
Saritha, Animon, Anoop, Mahin, Hashif 

Following his death, a relative of Pappachan lodged a complaint with the police, raising doubts about the accident. His daughter Rachel also filed a complaint with the Kollam East Police, expressing concerns about suspicious activity regarding his bank account. Transaction details from the private financial institution were crucial to the investigation.