Dispute over food, opens fire on crowd; crucial information on Moolamattom murder surfaces

IDUKKI: Some crucial information has been obtained on the incident where a bus employee was killed in a firing towards a crowd at Moolamattom. Sanal Babu of Keerithod was killed. A dispute over food at a thattukada led to the firing.

The police have arrested the accused identified as Phillip Martin of Maveli Puthenpurackal in Moolamattom. The incident happened at 9.40 pm last night. Philip and his team came to the thattukada run by women at Ashoka Kavala in Moolamattom. The accused created an uproar in the name of food.

The locals intervened and sent Philip home. He returned with a gun and shot at the crowd by sitting in his car. The eyewitnesses said five shots were fired.

When the accused was returning, he hit Sanal who was coming in a bike. He fired a shot at Sanal and he fell down. He was fired on his neck and died on the spot itself. Pradeep of Moolamattom, who was pillion riding also sustained gunshot injuries. He is under treatment in the ICU.

He fired shots from a country gun. The Muttathu police caught him when he tried escape in his vehicle after the attack. Police said there was no previous enmity behind the incident and that a sudden provocation was the cause of the firing.