MANNAR: A man accused of brutally murdering his wife was arrested after 19 years. Mannar Alummoodu native Kuttikrishnan was arrested by the police on Thursday. Following his arrest, locals were reminded of the brutal murder that shook the region 19 years ago. Kuttikrishnan killed his wife Jayanthi with a hammer after a fight broke out between them.

Kuttikrishnan married Vallikkunnam native Jayanthi after getting a divorce from his first wife. A few months after their marriage, Kuttikrishnan learnt that it was Jayanthi's second marriage and that she had hidden her previous marriage from him. Following this, the two began to quarrel frequently over the matter. The reason for the murder was a feud that arose out of the concealment of her first marriage and the suspicion that she had illicit relationships with other men. During the trial of the case, he absconded from the state. As Kuttikrishnan did not contact any of his friends and relatives, the police made tireless efforts to find his whereabouts.

Later, the police learnt that Kuttikrishnan met an astrologer from Erattupetta and served as his assistant in Kattappana for some time before moving to Odisha. He then worked in a tyre retreading company and some security firms in Odisha for some years. Later, he went to Mumbai to do a share marketing business. In the subsequent investigation, the police found that Kuttikrishnan moved from Mumbai to Ernakulam with a Kalamssery native after he suffered some financial losses. The police managed to arrest him in a search conducted in Kalamassery.