Bank employee Sooraj Kumar, who was 27 years old at the time, had been married to Uthra for two years when he came up with a gruesome plan to kill his wife. He aimed to become the sole owner of her dowry – gold – and receive a payout from her life insurance policy, which had been taken out just a few months before her death.
The couple had one child. The murdered woman, named Uthra, was a homemaker and had a disability. When she was fatally bitten by a snake, she was still recovering from a previous snake attack that had occurred just a few months earlier. That incident had already raised suspicions among her relatives.
In March 2020, Uthra was bitten by a Russell’s viper at her home in Adoor, India. After this bite, she was unable to get out of bed. She returned to her parents’ home to recover and had to undergo plastic surgery.
Just 52 days after the first attack, her mother found Uthra unconscious. It soon became clear that she had been bitten by another snake – this time a cobra. This happened on May 6, 2020. The next day, Uthra died in pain.
Only after searching the room was the dead cobra found. It was also chilling that her husband Sooraj, who usually slept late, had gotten up early that morning and gone outside before his wife was found.
Only a week after Uthra’s tragic death did her family begin to suspect that it might not have been an accident. The woman’s father, Vijayasenan, contacted the police. He realized that the cobra entering the room and attacking his daughter without her or her husband noticing would have been almost impossible.
Moreover, Uthra had told her parents that Sooraj was very skilled at handling venomous snakes. The family also contacted a well-known snake expert, Vava Suresh. He advised the victim’s parents to approach the authorities. He stated that even the first snake bite was almost unbelievable, as it would have been very difficult for a Russell’s viper to reach the second floor of the house where Uthra was attacked.
Pleaded guilty
Sooraj was arrested along with snake catcher Chavarukavu Suresh. Later, there was a major breakthrough in the investigation. In July 2020, Sooraj made a stunning confession. He admitted to buying two snakes for 100 pounds each. He also confessed to giving Uthra sleeping pills to sedate her before releasing the deadly “weapon.”
To ensure that the cobra would bite his wife, Sooraj also admitted to keeping the snake in a bottle without food from April 24 to May 6.
To ensure that the cobra would bite his wife, he admitted to keeping the snake in a bottle without food.
Emptied the bank safe
Sooraj was arrested for murder, attempted murder, attempted causing of permanent injury, and destruction of evidence. During the investigation into Uthra’s tragic death, it also emerged that her bank safe was emptied on the same day as the first snake bite.
Her father-in-law, Surendran Panicker, was also arrested on suspicion of destroying evidence and hiding 38 gold jewelry pieces. The police found them hidden in a nearby rubber plantation. Unfortunately, most of the woman’s dowry has still not been found.
In August of the same year, Sooraj’s mother Renuka and sister Surya were also arrested. They were suspected of conspiracy, domestic violence, and destruction of evidence.
The snake catcher, initially one of the suspects, later became a key figure in securing a conviction.
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