2 ex-armymen vanish for 19yrs after killing woman, babies; arrested
What's the story
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested two former Indian Army personnel in Puducherry.
The duo, Dibil Kumar B and Rajesh P, is accused of murdering a woman and her 17-day-old twin daughters in Kerala nearly 19 years ago.
They had been living under false identities since committing the crime on February 10, 2006.
Case details
Murder case background and initial investigation
The victims, 24-year-old Ranjini and her newborn twins, were found dead in their rented home in Anchal, Kollam district.
Ranjini's mother found the bodies when she returned after getting the twins' birth certificates.
Investigations revealed Kumar, who was then posted in the Indian Army's 45 AD Regiment in Pathankot, was in a relationship with Ranjini.
Motive uncovered
Paternity dispute and murder plot
After the twins were born on January 24, 2006, Kumar allegedly distanced himself from Ranjini.
The Kerala State Women's Commission had then ordered a paternity test to confirm if Kumar was the father of the twins.
This development reportedly led Kumar to conspire with his friend Rajesh, also serving in the same regiment, to murder Ranjini and her daughters.
Evasion tactics
Accused desert army, assume new identities
After the murders, both Kumar and Rajesh deserted the army and went into hiding. They were declared deserters by the Army in March 2006.
Despite widespread investigations by local police and a ₹2 lakh reward for information leading to their capture, they evaded arrest.
The case was handed over to the CBI in 2010 on the order of the Kerala High Court.
Case progress
Breakthrough in case after anonymous tip-off
The investigation gained momentum after an anonymous tip-off and an old wedding photo emerged.
"The technical intelligence wing made use of image metadata employing reverse search, aided by AI tools and found matches on social media," said Manoj Abraham, ADGP (Law & Order).
The CBI learned that Kumar had taken a new identity of Vishnu and Rajesh of Praveen Kumar. Both married teachers in Puducherry and started families under false identities.
Legal proceedings
Arrest and charges against the accused
They got Aadhaar cards in their new names to evade detection.
On Friday, CBI officers arrested them after confirming their identities through surveillance.
They were brought to Kochi and produced before the Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate Court on Saturday. The court remanded them to police custody till January 18.
The CBI has filed charges against both men and declared them proclaimed offenders during earlier investigations.