His body was stuffed into a sack and abandoned in an isolated plot in Thiruvananthapuram. A fourth person has been arrested in connection with the murder of 17-year-old Abhiram, who was lured through Instagram, beaten and strangled.
The fourth accused, identified as Aishwarya from Akkulam, was taken into custody on Wednesday night and formally arrested on Thursday. She is the girlfriend of another accused, Umar Muftar. Investigators suspect she was aware of the murder conspiracy and subsequent attempts to destroy evidence. When Abhiram attempted to leave, the accused attacked him. Police say he was brutally beaten, gagged with a cloth, and strangled with a belt. He also raised concerns over legal concessions available to juvenile offenders and suggested that amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act should be considered if necessary.
With this, four people, including a 17-year-old juvenile identified as the prime accused, are now in custody in connection with the murder.
During his visit, Chennithala said the grieving family was satisfied with the police action so far.
Kerala Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala visited the victim’s family at Pangappara in the district on Thursday.
Calling the murder an extremely heinous crime, Chennithala said no other child in Kerala should suffer such a fate.
Police say Abhiram was not the intended target and the main accused had planned to kill one of his friends over a relationship dispute involving his former girlfriend.
