A Kerala court found a man guilty of brutally murdering four members of his family in 2017 in the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram. The crime occurred in the Nanthancode area of the city, near the Chief Minister’s official residence.
The Thiruvananthapuram Additional Sessions Court-VI pronounced the verdict on Monday and the punishment will be decided on Tuesday.
The accused, Cadell Jeanson Raja, killed his father Professor A Raja Thankam, mother Jean Padma (58), sister Caroline (26) and a relative named Lalitha (70) on April 9, 2017, inside the family’s home at the Baines Compound.
Raja was arrested two days after the killings. Since then, he has remained in custody. During the investigation, Raja told police that he believed in parapsychology, the study of alleged psychic phenomena and other paranormal claims and astral projection. He claimed that these beliefs influenced him to commit the murders.
However, prosecutors argued that these claims were false and meant to avoid punishment. According to investigators, Raja’s original plan was to kill only his father, who he believed had emotionally neglected him. But the situation escalated, and he went on to kill the others in the house.
Written by Disha Maloo