Five more policemen, including a sub-inspector, were arrested on Wednesday on murder charges in the sensational death of a father and son following alleged custodial torture, taking the total detentions in the case to ten, the Crime Branch-CID said.
During their day-long questioning, it emerged the five — sub-inspector Paldurai, constables Vali Muthu, Chelladurai, Thomas and head-constable Samdurai — had abetted the crime and hence they were arrested, a senior CB-CID official said late Wednesday.
“They (constables) had held the accused while the SI beat them,” the official told PTI adding they have been booked for offences of murder, causing disappearance of evidence, abetment and wrongful confinement under the Indian Penal Code.
Last week, five other police personnel, including an inspector and two sub-inspectors, of Sathankulam police station where the father-son duo were allegedly thrashed had been arrested on charges, including murder and remanded to judicial custody.
P Jeyaraj and his son Bennicks had died within hours on June 22 and 23 respectively after alleged torture by Sathankulam Police following their arrest on June 19 on charges of violation of prohibitory orders by keeping open their mobile phone outlet beyond the permitted business hours.
The CB-CID, which took over the case on the orders of the Madras High Court Madurai Bench amid a nation-wide furore over the alleged brutality meted out to the victims, on Wednesday grilled the third SI and constables as part of its probe. The five policemen arrested last week are presently lodged in Madurai Central Prison.
Source: News18