Missing TCS techie found killed between Kovalam and Mahabalipuram

Chennai: A 31-year-old software professional who went missing from Thuraipakkam was found murdered in the wetland between Kovalam and Mahabalipuram, on Saturday.

The murder came to light after Therkupet villagers noticed the body stuck in the marshland abutting the Buckingham canal, and alerted Mahabalipuram police.
The body was moved to Chengalpet GH.

The deceased was identified as V. Karthikeyan, (31), who was employed with TCS in Thuraipakkam, with the help of the missing complaint lodged by the family with Thuraipakkam police.

Karthikeyan, who was staying along the IT Corridor–Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR), had moved to a rented house from men’s paying guest accommodation in Thuraipakkam on November 2. He and his mother had the house-warming ceremony in the afternoon.

Shanmugam, uncle of the techie,  told Deccan Chronicle that he had gone to fetch money for advance, leaving his mother in the newly moved neighbourhood, and never returned.

“He last contacted the landlord to say that he has money at hand and would come soon. As efforts to reach him failed, we preferred a complaint with the cops,” he said.

Murugavel, another relative, said they strongly suspect that the techie could have been murdered in a strained financial transaction among occupants of the boarding house.

“A look at the body suggested that the face was smashed with some object, and an eye was missing from its place. The boy took about Rs 50,000 from the family two months ago, citing an emergency for a friend,” he said.

Mahabalipuram police said that the case would progress based on the outcome of the autopsy result. "On establishing foul play, the case will be transferred to Thuraipakkam police for further action who might alter their man missing case into murder," said a senior police officer.

Asked about the injuries, the official maintained that the body had already bloated, and was in a highly decomposed state. "Since the marshland has a rich ecosystem, either fish or birds might have fed on the carcass. The autopsy is likely to shed light whether injuries occurred ante-mortem or after death", the officer observed.