Pathanamthitta: A special investigation team, probing the rape case involving Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, visited the house of an acquaintance of the MLA’s friend Joby Joseph, who is also listed as an accused in the case.

The police reached the home of Ajish, a resident of Mylapra, Pathanamthitta, on Sunday evening. Since the investigation began, Joby Joseph, a native of Chengannur, has reportedly been evading authorities. Examination of his phone records indicated that the last known contact was with Ajish, prompting the police to approach him. He has reportedly been issued a notice to appear in Thiruvananthapuram for giving his statement.

Meanwhile, as part of the investigation, the police also conducted a search at Rahul’s flat in Palakkad. They reportedly visited the security room to review CCTV footage from the days when the complainant had visited the flat. However, the police were unable to obtain any CCTV recordings.

According to the complainant, Rahul allegedly raped her at the Palakkad flat as well. This was the reason for the police attempting to secure CCTV footage from the premises. However, footage from the period described in the complaint is not available, as older recordings cannot be stored on the DVR for such a long period. The police are expected to recover the hard disk for forensic examination and attempt to back up the recordings. Footage from nearby CCTV cameras may also be reviewed as part of the ongoing investigation.