Man Gets Death Penalty For Murdering Newlywed Couple In Kerala

A court in Kerala on Monday handed a death penalty to a man convicted of killing a newly married couple in 2018 in Vellamunda Kandathuvayalil area of Wayanad district.

District and Sessions Judge V Harris also imposed a fine of Rs 12 lakh on the 48-year-old convict -- Kalangottummal Viswanathan -- who hails from Kavilumpara in Kozhikode district.

The court directed that the convict be hanged till death for the murder of the couple -- Ummer (26) and Fathima (19) of Purinjiyilvayal in Vellamunda -- on July 6, 2018.

Robbery was the motive behind the double murder, the prosecution said.

The court also awarded seven years of rigorous imprisonment for robbery, 10 years for housebreaking and seven years for destruction of evidence.

The court, in its order, appreciated the efforts of the police team led by Mananthavady DySP KM Devasia, for cracking the double murder case as initially there were not many leads in the case. The police shadowed hundreds of suspects, including Viswanathan, before identifying him as the real culprit and nabbing him.

It was in November 2020 that the charge sheet was filed in the case and around 45 out of a list of 72 witnesses were examined during the trial.

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