Police arrest accused in Chengannur murder case

Alappuzha: The Chengannur judicial first class magistrate on Monday remanded Sherin John (36), the accused in the Chengannur murder case, to 14 days' judicial custody.
The Chengannur police arrested Sherin from Kottayam on Monday after he confessed to shooting and killing his father Joy V John (68), who is settled in the US.
The police took the accused to various locations where he had disposed John's body parts after the murder.The investigation team collected the head from the bushes near Travancore Electro Chemicals (Tecil) at Chingavanam, legs and left hand from the Pamba River at Pulikeezhu and Pandanadu and rest of the body parts from the Changanassery-Madakkumoodu road near Changanassery.
District police chief P Ashok Kumar said Sherin, who was born and brought up in the US, had always had quarrels with his father about financial matters, forcing him to return to India in 2013. "His father, mother, brother and sister had reached Chengannur from the US on May 19. Sherin was asked by his father to keep away from their home till they return to the US," said Kumar.
Sherin told police that Joy had always ignored him and was not ready to give him money and even appointed a manger to take care of their shopping complex and the family's financial dealings in Chengannur.
"The incident happened at 8am on Wednesday after Sherin and his father went to Thiruvananthapuram to get their car air-conditioner repaired. The duo had a quarrel again which prompted Sherin to shoot his father, killing him on the spot. He later tried to burn the body," said the officer.
"Sherin then chopped off John's body parts and dumped it at separate locations. He then rang up his mother and told her that he had a quarrel with his father and he made a mistake. Following this he went missing. The mother lodged a complaint with the Chengannur police on Thursday saying that her husband and son were missing," he added.
Police traced Sherin who was staying in a hotel in Kottayam the same day.
The police said that Sherin had got married in Bengaluru in 2013 and the same year, his wife left him. But his family was unaware about his wedding. They added that he used narcotics and did not have any mental issues.