Kerala cyanide case: Woman arrested for killing husband, five relatives

The mysterious deaths of six members of a family within a gap of 14 years, at Koodathayi in Kerala's Kozhikode district, took a new turn on Saturday with the police arresting a woman, who is a close relative of the deceased. Two others, who supplied the cyanide to her, were also arrested.

Jolly Thomas, wife of Roy Thomas, who died in 2011, is being questioned by the police in connection with the suspected murders of the six people. Jolly's second husband and Roy's cousin Shaju Skaria, was questioned by police, but was released later.

One of the two other arrested, Mathew, is a relative of the woman, and was earlier employed with a jewellery. The third arrested, Pradip Kumar, is a goldsmith who allegedly supplied cyanide to the accused woman.

The news hit headlines after eerie similarities between all the six deaths, in a span of 14 years, came to the fore. Retired educational department officer P. Tom Thomas (66) his wife Annamma (57) son Roy Thomas (40) wife of Tom Thomas's brother's son Shaju Skaria, Sily Shaju (44) her two-year-old daughter Alphine, and Annamma's brother Mathew Manjadiyil (68) had died under mysterious circumstances during the period from 2002 to 2016.

Foul play was suspected after a part of the family property was allegedly grabbed by Jolly, fabricating fake will documents. The case came to light after Tom's second son and Roy's brother Rojo, who is settled in the USA, filed a complaint alleging foul play in the deaths, after Jolly secured the property.

The probe team, on Friday, exhumed all the bodies for a re-examination to confirm whether they were poisoned. The cops exhumed the bodies of Sily and her daughter first because they were the most recent deaths (Alphine in 2014 and Sily in 2016).

After the death of her relatives, Jolly allegedly tried to fabricate a fake will and take over the property. This prompted the police to make inquiries. Jolly was asked to undergo a lie-detector test which she refused, forcing the cops to exhume the bodies to collect evidence.

There were also allegations that attempts were made to dissuade Rojo from filing a complaint. Rojo and Jolly had apparently sorted out the property dispute after negotiations.

The police had earlier said the presence of Jolly was noted at the time of the all the six deaths. Jolly's marriage with Shaju, first cousin of Roy (Tom's brother's son) and husband of Sily, also raised suspicions.

Traces of cyanide were found in the body Roy. A probe later led to the other five deaths in the family. All the deceased had complained of uneasiness and fell unconscious before breathing their last. Police had stated that all of them collapsed after having their food.

Retired teacher Annamma had died first in 2002 after having mutton soup. Her son Roy Thomas had also died after having food in 2011.

The family said that Roy had died of heart attack. However, during an examination at a private hospital, traces of poison were found in his body. The family, suspecting it to be a case of suicide, did not reveal it to anyone, fearing disrepute.

Annamma's husband Tom Thomas had died in 2008. Her brother Mathew died in 2014. In the same year, Sily's daughter too passed away. Sily died in 2016.

Graves opened

The graves at St Mary's Forane Church, Kodenchery, and Lourde Matha Church, Koodathay, were opened on Friday.

"It needs to be ascertained whether the poison entered their body through food, leading to the death. That is why the bodies were exhumed and mortal remains sent for tests. The forensic test results would shed more light on this," the police said.

Vatakara rural SP K.G. Simon and the police team arrived at the graveyard of St Mary's Forane Church by 10am on Friday. The police team, comprising forensic experts and doctors, opened the graves.

Within an hour, they collected the non-decomposed mortal remains of Sily and her daughter. Both the police and forensic experts examined the remains.

The Crime Branch and the team then headed to the Lourde Matha Church in Koodathai by 11:40am and the graves of the other four were also opened and checked. Their relatives and people's representatives were also present when the graves were opened.

The Crime Branch has already collected crucial pieces of evidence, the officers said.

Timeline of the deaths

Six members of the family, including a two-year-old girl, had died in a span of 14 years—between 2002 to 2016—in Koodathayi village in Kerala's Kozhikode district.

1) Annama Thomas (August 22, 2002)

A retired schoolteacher, Annamma collapsed after consuming mutton soup. She had foam coming out of her mouth, and died before reaching the hospital.

Tom Thomas Ponnamattom (August 26, 2008)

After consuming mashed tapioca, Tom Thomas vomited and collapsed. His son Roy's wife Jolly was the only person present in the house at the time. Neighbours, who rushed to help hearing the cries of Jolly, found Tom lying on the floor with foam coming out of his mouth. He was taken to the hospital, but died on the way.

3) Roy Thomas (September 9, 2011)

He had food soon after returning home and rushed to the washroom, where he vomited and collapsed. His wife Jolly and daughter were the only ones with him in the house at the time. Neighbours broke the washroom door to take him out. He died before reaching hospital. Autopsy report revealed that there were traces of cyanide in the body.

4) Mathew Manjadiyil (February 24, 2014)

He was alone at his home when he collapsed and died. Jolly, who stays nearby, alerted neighbours who found Mathew lying on the floor with foam coming out of his mouth. He too died before reaching hospital.

5) Alphine Shaju (May 3, 2014)

She consumed meat and bread on the day of her brother's first holy communion and lost consciousness. She was taken to a private hospital nearby and later to another private hospital in Kozhikode. She died on the third day.

6) Sily Shaju (January 11, 2016)

Sily, mother of late Alphine Shaju, had reached Thamarasserry along with Jolly after attending a relative's marriage. Her husband Shaju too reached there. In the evening, Shaju went to see a dentist along with the two women and their children. When Shaju went inside to see the doctor, Jolly and Sily waited outside. Meanwhile, Sily's brother came to see them. Soon, Sily collapsed into Jolly's lap. She too had foam coming out of her mouth and passed away before reaching the hospital.