No eyewitnesses but still Praveen was convicted: How did scientific digital evidence help in investigating Gayathri murder case?

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The accused was convicted on the basis of scientific evidence and digital evidence found by the police and the prosecution in the Thampanoor Gayathri murder case, where there were no eyewitnesses.

The prosecution was able to prove that the fingerprints collected from the lodge room in Thampanoor where Praveen and Gayathri were staying belonged to the accused. The timing of the phone conversations between the accused, Gayathri and Gayathri's relatives and the tower locations of the mobile phones were crucial in the investigation.

Praveen, went to Kattakada and picked up Gayathri on a two-wheeler after booking a room at a hotel in Thampanoor on the morning of March 5, 2022. Praveen called Gayathri saying that he wanted to resolve the issues before moving to a jewellery shop in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. However, Gayathri insisted on taking him along. After killing Gayathri, Praveen hatched a plan to make it look like a suicide.

Praveen, who locked the hotel room at 5:30 pm, had also taken Gayathri's phone before leaving. Praveen shared the photos from this phone as WhatsApp status and posted them on Facebook at 7 pm with the title 'Love You'. This was to make it seem like Gayatri had committed suicide after a fight with him.

Praveen, who had noticed the photos shared as WhatsApp status from this phone, posted the same photos on Facebook at 7 pm with the title 'Love You'. This was to make it seem like Gayathri had committed suicide after a fight with him.

When Gayathri's sister Jayashree called at night, Praveen threatened her, saying that Gayathri was with him and that no one should look for her anymore. They then filed a complaint with the Kattakada police. After the murder, Praveen, who returned to Paravur by bus, called the hotel at 12.30 am to inform them that Gayathri was dead. Legal experts say that the future of the case would have been different if digital and scientific evidence had not been found.