Frightening desolation still lingering in House no:117, Bains Compound; current status of Nanthancode astral projection massacre case

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The gate has started to rust after being locked for too long, the road from the main gate to the house is fully covered with shrubs and plants, and the plants have so overgrown so much that the house cannot be seen from the road. Although the nearby houses are inhabited, house number 117 in Bains Compound is still frighteningly desolate. What is being said is the present condition of the house where the Nanthancodu massacre took place seven years ago.

The massacre that took place on April 9, 2017 in the city of Thiruvananthapuram shocked the whole conscience of Kerala. A family of four including Professor Rajathankam, his wife Jean Padma who was a doctor at the General Hospital, their daughter Caroline and their relative Lalita were killed in their own house near Cliff House. Caddell Jeansen Raja who was a member of that same family was behind those murders that shocked the human conscience.

In the police chargesheet, it is stated that Caddell was severely mentally ill and the massacre was a part of astral projection, which is a sorcery process. The police have also submitted a medical report stating that the accused Caddell is not fit to stand trial. He has been charged with murder, arson and destruction of evidence. There are 92 witnesses in the charge sheet filed by investigating officer KE Baiju. 151 documents have also been submitted in connection with the case.

Caddell is now in solitary confinement in Poojappura Central Jail, Thiruvananthapuram. He is occasionally referred to the Oolampara Mental Health Center for treatment as he shows signs of severe mental illness. Born on the day of the Peruman tragedy, Caddell had a peculiar personality from an early age.

Rajathankam sent his son to the Philippines to study MBBS with the desire that his son would get a higher education like the rest of the family. However, after exactly one year, Caddell dropped out and returned. Later he was sent to Australia to study computer engineering. Caddell left his studies there too and returned home to Thiruvananthapuram. Caddell's life after that was in front of computers in an upstairs room at his home.

Caddell, who had a keen interest in astral projection and Chathan Seva, was making video games in front of the computers in the room. All video games were full of war, killing and blood. He requested his mother to come upstairs saying he was going to show her a video game he had made, made her sit in front of the computer and then choked her to death from behind.

Caddell then hacked his mother's body to pieces with an axe ordered online and moved it to the bathroom. After this, he came downstairs and ate with his father and sister as if nothing had happened. When asked where his mother was, Caddell said that she was watching the game he had made. Later, he took his father and sister upstairs and killed them the same way. When he realized that his relative Lalita had learned about the murder, he killed her too.

Later, an attempt was made to burn the dead bodies kept in the upstairs toilet. Meanwhile, the house caught fire. Neighbours saw the smoke and informed the fire department. Realizing the danger, Caddell immediately ran out of the house. There are eyewitnesses who saw Caddell running past a nearby house and hiding when the smoke started to rise. After committing the murder, he escaped to Chennai. Later, when he returned, he was caught by the police at Thiruvananthapuram Central Railway Station.

The police found that astral projection was the reason behind the murder in the detailed interrogation that followed. Police say Caddell admitted that he performed astral projection in which the soul can be seen leaving the body. Chief consultant Dr KJ Nelson of Thiruvananthapuram Mental Health Center had earlier testified in the court that Caddell Jeansen Raja was under treatment for schizophrenia.

The court ordered to submit a report on whether Caddell Jeansen Raja had any mental problems before the murder. This was when the case was being considered last September. The court had asked the investigating officers to submit this as a supplementary report. Only one visitor came to see Caddell in Poojappura Central Jail in the first six years. That visitor was his mother Jean Padma's brother Jose. He also stopped visiting after a while.

Caddell admitted to committing the murder quoting his mental illness as the reason for the murders and sought bail to undergo treatment, but the court rejected his bail plea. The court denied the bail application and suggested that Caddell continue to receive the treatment he is currently receiving.

Caddell's lawyers said that he committed the murder because of severe mental illness. He is seeking to be permanently dismissed from the case quoting his mental illness. Then the court directed to check the medical information. The court found Caddell incompetent to stand trial after doctors also testified that he suffered from severe mental illness.

The court sought to see if anyone would be willing to take the responsibility of Caddell but no one came forward. A house worth crores located in Nanthancode Bains compound along with properties worth crores located in other parts of Thiruvananthapuram district and Tamil Nadu are lying unattended today. Caddell, who is the only heir to all this property, does not know if he will ever be able to get out of prison.