Wayanad: In the ongoing investigation into the kidnapping and murder of businessman Hemachandran, police on Friday took the prime accused Noushad, a Sulthan Bathery native, to multiple locations in Wayanad and nearby Nilgiri district in Tamil Nadu to gather critical evidence.
According to investigators, Noushad, along with accomplices Ajesh B.S. and Panangad Jyothishkumar, abducted Hemachandran from the casualty wing of Kozhikode Medical College Hospital on March 20, 2024. He was taken to a house in Kaivettamoola near Beenachi, reportedly under Noushad’s control for months. There, the accused allegedly murdered him after holding him captive for several days over unpaid debts totalling around ₹20 lakh.
In a controversial video posted online before his arrest, Noushad claimed that Hemachandran had died by suicide, and that he, along with two friends, only buried the body in marshland near Cherambadi. However, police believe the accused attempted to burn the body using petrol and sugar, and buried it when that failed.
On Thursday and Friday, the police took Noushad to the petrol pump, sugar shop, Cherambadi burial site, and to a rental firm and moneylender’s office—as evidence revealed Hemachandran was forced to rent a car and pledge it in a failed attempt to repay part of the debt.
Sources say two women and a youth from Wayanad who aided in the crime are likely to be arrested soon.
The probe is led by Asst. Commissioner A Umesh and Inspector KK Agesh.