Karuvatta Murder Case: Juvenile Board Defers Custody Plea Decision to August 29

Alappuzha: The Juvenile Justice Board has deferred to August 29 its decision on a police application seeking five days' custody of the juvenile accused in the murder of an elderly man in Karuvatta. Haripad police had sought custody of the second to fourth accused in the case.

The board will take its decision after also considering the police report urging that the benefit of age should not be extended to the accused given the gravity of the offence. The children identified as accused and arrested by police are currently in an observation home.

In its report to the Juvenile Justice Board, police had demanded that questioning and evidence collection be permitted without treating the accused as minors, citing the planning and nature of the crime and the brutality of the act. The investigation and evidence collection are being supervised by senior officials.

The body of Shivankutty Chettiar (67), the victim, was found at his home on the 17th. Investigation revealed that the mastermind behind the killing was his 13-year-old granddaughter. The actual killing was carried out by her friends from Kollam. The victim and the girl had previously quarrelled over her excessive phone use, and the murder was committed out of revenge for this. Following the killing, the accused also stole gold from the house.