Man who set FB girlfriend ablaze held near Krishnagiri district

Chennai: Cuddalore police on Wednesday arrested the man who set the Chennai college student he met through Facebook on fire near Panruti last week.

The accused, Muthu alias Narayanan was arrested from his hideout in Kittakollai in Krishnagiri district by a special team.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the accused is already married and met his wife too through Facebook. The accused is a class 10 drop out and runs a mobile phone accessories shop, police sources said. According to a senior police officer, the police team managed to trace the accused and arrest him despite the minimal co-operation from the victim.

The 23-year-old woman was found with burn injuries by villagers near Kadambuliyur on July 1. The duo got married at a temple in Panruti and decided to commit suicide as the man suggested that it would be difficult for them to lead a life together. However, after setting the woman on fire, he fled the scene.
Timely intervention by the locals saved the woman who was sent back home to Chennai with her parents.

She had left home on June 29 at the behest of the accused, whom she acquainted with through Facebook eight months ago.  The accused was produced before a magistrate and remanded to judicial custody.