Alappuzha: The main accused in a twin murder case has been arrested by police. Edathua native Mobin Mathew (25), alias Manu, had killed a youth and murdered his friend who was an accomplice in the first murder on the suspicion that he might spill the beans.

Mobin's cousin Joffin Joseph, 28, was also taken into custody for helping Mobin in the second murder.

The police said Joffin, Mobin's father Mathew K Mathew, and Joffin's father Joseph Mathew (Babychan) are also named as accused in Madhu's murder case. The arrest came after several months of investigation.

According to the police, Mobin had killed 40-year-old Madhu and dumped his body in a field, and Varghese Ouseph, 28, alias Linto, who had helped Mobin in the first murder was killed two months later and his body dumped on the railway track. Both Linto and Madhu are from Chekkidikad.

Police were proceeding with the lie-detector test of Linto in the Madhu murder case when they found a decomposed body near the railway track at Thakazhi on September 19. They confirmed it was Linto’s from a wallet lying nearby, which was also reconfirmed by a DNA test.

A fight over Madhu harassing a woman who is a relative of Mobin had resulted in the murder of Madhu. On the night of April 19, as part of the celebrations of Mobin's relative's engagement, a group that included Madhu, Linto and Mobin consumed alcohol at a deserted area near a paddy field.

After others left, it is suspected that Mobin and Linto strangled Madhu using a cable. When the police summoned them for questioning and to carry out polygraph tests as part of the investigation into the murder case, Linto cracked and almost wanted to surrender. During that period, as per the advice of Mobin, Linto was hiding in a nearby unused building since June 10.

When Linto said he wanted to surrender, Mobin came to the hideout along with Joffin and beat Linto to death, the cops said. The police suspect that they used Mobin’s vehicle, used for carrying fish, to dump the body at a deserted place at the rail track. In order to plan the two murders and destroy the evidence, he saw the film 'Drishyam' several times, Mobin told the cops.

Killers put up an action council

However, it was Mobin and Linto who were in the forefront of the activities of the action council set up to seek a police probe into the murder of Madhu. They even took part in a police station march. When they came to know that the cops could catch them soon, they pressured the action council to demand the transfer of the case from local cops to the crime branch, the police said.

An order has been issued the other day transferring the case to the crime branch. Meanwhile, both the accused were held by a team led by district police chief.

Saw 'Drishyam' 17 times

Mobin had seen the Mohanlal-starrer Drishyam 17 times to plan the double murders and modeled himself on the character played by Jagadeesh in Sethurama Iyer CBI.

But the cops got the better of him, and unearthed every single evidence he tried to destroy. On the day of his relative's engagement, the liquor party was held at a deserted place near a paddy field. There, Mobin ensured that Madhu stayed back till others left. When alcohol got over, Mobin got the stock replenished. In between, they had an argument, and both came to blows. Even though he had a mobile phone, Mobin used the phone of a neighbor to call Linto to the place.

Madhu was first hit on the head and was strangled using insulated cable meant for fencing. They dropped the body from a log bridge into water. Next day, Mobin sent a message to Linto to go out and check if the body has surfaced in the water. Madhu's sister had noticed the suspicious movement of Linto then.

Later, when the body was found, both Mobin and Linto took part in the last rites of Madhu. Mobin's actions to push cops to probe the case and set up an action council helped divert attention from the duo.

In fact, Mobin and Linto led the march to the police station protesting against the cops and alleging that there was no progress in the investigation. The duo also spread stories that that Madhu had loose morals and a quarrel over some illicit relationship might have led to his murder. All these actions had an uncanny resemblance to the character Mani played by Jagadeesh in Sethurama Iyer CBI.

When Linto was called for questioning, Mobin made arrangements for him to stay at a hideout. On June 9, Linto reached Alappuzha and called Mobin on phone and told him that he is going to surrender. Mobin asked him to switch off the phone and come over to Edathua so that they can talk it out. Nobody has seen Linto after this.

The police believe that Mobin asked Linto to switch off the mobile phone and return to Edathua so that he could cook up a story of a desertion. Mobin also slipped when he tried to unnecessarily convince the cops during questioning, a la the lead actor in Drishyam, that he was not involved in the murders.

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