The three male suspects, aged 16 and 17, broke into the victim's Karuvatta residence on August 15, where they beat and smothered him to death before stealing four-and-a-half sovereigns of gold. Following the assault, the boys showed the crime scene to the 13-year-old granddaughter over a WhatsApp call prior to their arrest on August 17. The comprehensive 740-page chargesheet is supported by 87 witness testimonies, 98 documents, and evidence from six recovered CCTV recordings. A juvenile justice board will evaluate the older boys' mental states and social backgrounds to decide if they should be tried as adults.
Key points
The four minors organized the fatal robbery across two months of communication on Instagr…: The four minors organized the fatal robbery across two months of communication on Instagram.
Prosecutors are formally petitioning to try the three 16- and 17-year-old male suspects a…: Prosecutors are formally petitioning to try the three 16- and 17-year-old male suspects as adults.
The 13-year-old granddaughter will be tried exclusively before the local juvenile justice…: The 13-year-old granddaughter will be tried exclusively before the local juvenile justice board.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
KOTTAYAM: The 13-year-old girl got her friends to murder her 67-year-old maternal grandfather at Karuvatta allegedly to raise money for an iPhone for her and a motorcycle for her friend, as per police's chargesheet filed before the juvenile justice board (JJB).
The 740-page chargesheet names four juveniles as accused - two of them aged 17, one 16 years and the 13-year-old girl. Police described it a rare case as all four are aged under 18.
According to the police, the three boys entered the elderly man's house on Aug 15 night through a ventilation opening after lifting the bathroom roof tile. They allegedly stuffed cloth into the man's mouth and pressed a bedsheet over his face to render him unconscious.
They then tied his hands to his thighs with a dhoti and bound his legs with a towel. They then stomped on him and beat him on the neck and head, leading to his death, but no weapons were used, the chargesheet stated. The accused allegedly stole four-and-a-half sovereigns of gold from the house.
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