As there is a strong suspicion that additional individuals may have been killed and buried, the special investigation team (SIT) looking into the suspected human sacrifice case in Kerala Pathanamthitta district began excavating the property belonging to one of the accused in Elanthoor village on Saturday.
Police are attempting to calm irate townspeople as a large team of forensic specialists, cadaver specialised dogs, and the three suspects are present at the scene. For the murder of two ladies, police have detained three persons, named as Mohammad Shafi, Bhagaval Singh, and his wife Laila.
Around 2 pm, two cadaver expert dogs named Maya and Murphy began sniffing Singh’s large 1.5-acre property. Additionally, two JCBs have been requested to the area. Several bones were found at the scene, however authorities are unsure if they are human bones. These will be delivered for forensic analysis.
The police said all three accused are keeping silent and trying to cover several things.
An SIT official said that after sustained interrogation they suspect “more killings have taken place.”
“None of the three accused are making any significant disclosures in this respect. However, given that the primary suspect, Mohammad Shafi alias Rasheed, had travelled around the state in search of potential victims, we do not believe the worst, according to the SIT officer who wished to remain anonymous.
The SIT searched Shafi’s hotel and residence in Kochi on Friday.
According to the source stated above, Shafi’s wife Nabeeza allegedly said during the inquiry that he had handed her 40,000 in September last week and claimed to have acquired the money “after selling of one of his old automobiles.” Later, after killing his second victim, investigators discovered that he had mortgaged the gold they had recovered.
