Man who shot dead Kerala cop kills wife, self

MALAPPURAM - A day after shooting a policeman dead, a man in Kerala killed his wife before turning the gun on himself. Their bodies were found in a rubber estate near his home here, police said.

Mujib, who killed sub-inspector Vijayakrishnan Sunday, first shot his wife and then shot himself, Additional Director General of Police Mahesh Kumar Singla, who was camping in the area, told reporters.

“The same gun that was used to shoot the police official was used today (Monday) also by him,” said Singla.

According to the police, Vijayakrishnan and five policemen had reached Mujib’s home Sunday to arrest him in a molestation case. But Mujib had an argument with the police team and fired at Vijayakrishnan twice and escaped.

The bullets hit Vijayakrishnan in the chest and neck. He was rushed to a nearby government hospital but he died of injuries on way to the hospital.

Locals said that Mujib, after killing Vijayakrishnan, escaped to the forests along with his wife and two children.

Mujib and his wife were also seen by rubber tappers, who he threatened. The tappers immediately ran away and Mujib pulled the trigger twice soon after, locals said.

TV visuals showed both Mujib and his wife’s bodies lying side by side with the gun beside his legs.

Mujib, however, spared his two children, who are now with the police.

State Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, meanwhile, visited the residence of the slain police official.

“This is an area where there are lots of unlicensed guns and this has to be looked into seriously. The state government will do everything possible to see that Vijayakrishnan’s family is taken care of,” said Balakrishnan.