KAYPAMANGALAM: Nine people have been arrested in the brutal killing of Charles Benjamin (Arun), a native of Coimbatore, in a case tied to the Iridium rice puller scam. The arrested include Muhammad Sadiq (59) from Kannur, Salim (54) from Thalassery, Fais (48), Mujeeb (49) from Thrissur, Dileep Chandran (44) from Thrissur, Dhanesh (32) from Sreenarayanapuram, Suresh (48) from Ernakulam, Shihab (40) from Azheekode, and Abhay (19) from Sreenarayanapuram.

Charles Benjamin was beaten to death on the 23rd of this month and left in an ambulance. He and another man, Shashankan from Kollam, had reportedly taken Rs 65 lakh from Sadiq, promising to provide iridium. Realizing they had been scammed, Sadiq and his associates lured Benjamin to the Puthukkad toll plaza, where they assaulted him fatally. Shashankan was also attacked but survived.

The vehicle used to transport Benjamin’s body after the murder has been recovered from Tirur. Investigators have stated that more individuals are involved in the case and further arrests are expected. The court has remanded the accused into custody as the investigation continues.