THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a gruesome premeditated attack on Monday evening, a 23-year-old man killed five family members, including his girlfriend, before attempting to murder his mother in Venjaramoodu, Thiruvananthapuram. The accused, identified as Affan, carried out the killings at three different locations before surrendering to the police.
Affan reportedly told investigators that he murdered six family members because they refused to help him clear massive debts he had accumulated after his business failed in a Gulf country. However, police remain skeptical of his claims and are probing deeper, including checking his mobile records to determine possible drug addiction.
His mother, Shemi (47), a cancer patient, is in critical condition in the ICU. Affan was also hospitalized after claiming he had consumed rat poison, but doctors found no traces of poison in his system.
According to police, Affan began his rampage at 3 p.m. by killing his grandmother, Salma Beevi (88), at her home in Pangode. He then traveled 16 km to SN Puram near Koonanvenga, where he murdered his paternal uncle Abdul Latheef (58) and his wife, Shahida Beevi (54). Finally, he returned home to Perumala near Pullampara, where he attacked his mother, younger brother Afzan (14), and girlfriend Farshana (19).
After the murders, Affan took an autorickshaw to Venjaramoodu police station and surrendered. Police said Affan and his brother had previously lived in the Gulf with their father, Rahim, before returning to Kerala with their mother following financial losses in their business.
