Police in Thiruvananthapuram said on Tuesday, November 3, that three people are in custody after a 17-year-old student who had been reported missing from home on Sunday afternoon was found dead in a sack on a vacant plot at Pangappara, within the Sreekaryam police station limits. A preliminary examination of the body indicated strangulation as the cause of death, police said.

Source: The CSR Journal

According to police, those held are a teenage boy, who has been detained, an 18-year-old woman, who has been arrested, and a 22-year-old man identified by police as Umar, who has also been arrested. Police said the boy was allegedly lured out through a call made using the woman's phone and an impersonated Instagram account. Umar is alleged to have helped dispose of the body; police said he has previous cases against him and is facing proceedings under the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act (KAAPA). These are police allegations and have not been tested in court.

Source: Particle News

Father questions the police account

The student's father alleged that his son was called out of the house and asked to bring a friend to the spot, and that he was killed when he refused. He questioned whether the detained teenager acted alone, suggesting the boy may be taking the blame for others because of his age, and alleged that police first detained the teenager and then let him go home for the night instead of questioning him thoroughly. These are the father's allegations; police have not responded to them in the reports available.

Source: The CSR Journal

The boy's parents and local residents protested outside the Sreekaryam police station, alleging slow initial police action in the case, according to reports. The family had reported the student missing on Sunday after he left home saying he was going to meet a friend and did not return.

Source: Particle News

Investigators are reconstructing the sequence of events using phone records, CCTV footage and the post-mortem findings, reports said. Because the prime accused is a minor, how he is dealt with will be governed by juvenile-justice rules, and the outcome of the case will rest on the forensic evidence and the investigation that follows.