Dubai: Yesterday, a 22-year-old man was arrested in the Indian state of Kerala, for allegedly murdering his 16-year-old sister by mixing poison in her ice cream. That's not all, apparently, he had also attempted to kill his parents. The reason? Albin Benny, the accused, told the police that he committed these crimes, because he "wanted to live alone".
Shocked social media users in the country are sharing news reports, about the incident that took place in Kasaragod.
According to the police, Benny admitted that he mixed poison in the ice cream which his sister, and parents consumed on August 4 night.
"We have recorded the statement of Albin who confessed that he had mixed poison in her ice cream," they said, according to a news report by the Press Trust of India.
On Thursday, Vellarikundu police arrested Benny, an automobile mechanic by profession, for the murder of his sister Ann Mary, and an attempt to murder of his parents Benny Olikkal and Bessy.
Reportedly, inspector K Premsadan, station house officer of Vellarikundu, who investigated the case, said: "The murder of Ann Mary was ruthless and diabolic," according to a news report by The New Indian Express.
The officer added that Benny wanted to usurp the family property, and had apparently planned to pass off the three murders as suicide. But not everything went as per his "much-rehearsed plan", the inspector added.
Poisoning the ice cream
The police said, on July 30, Benny asked his mother Bessy and sister Ann Mary to make him ice-cream.
Ann Mary, who bought the ingredients from a nearby bakery helped her mother make the ice cream, and put it in the freezer. That night, Albin, emptied half a tube of Ratol paste into the ice-cream bucket placed below in the fridge. Ratol paste, is a commonly used rodenticide in India. It apparently contain 3 per cent yellow phosphorus, which is a general protoplasmic poison causing multiorgan failure.
A dose "less than 1 mg/kg is almost invariably fatal," according to an report published on The National Center for Biotechnology Information's (US) website.
On July 31, Ann Mary and her father consumed the ice cream, but Albin excused himself saying he had throat pain, the officer said, according to the news report.
Their mother had just a bit because "she found the taste to be foul".
On August 1, Ann Mary started vomiting and suffered from diarrhoea. Her father first took her to a homeopathy clinic, and then to a cooperative hospital in Vellarikkundu.
After several tests, the doctors concluded on August 4 that she had jaundice because her liver was not in good condition; her eyes had turned yellow, and so was her urine.
On August 5, her condition worsened and she was taken to a private hospital in Cherupuzha where she died.
Cherupuzha police registered a case of unnatural death because Ann Mary's father too started to show similar symptoms for which he was taken to MIMS in Kozhikode. Here it was found that the father's liver had sufferred 80 per cent damage, and he needed a liver transplant to survive.
Unable to afford the transplant, the family brought him back and admitted him to a local hospital in Payyannur.
Meanwhile, Ann Mary's post-mortem revealed the presence of yellow phosphorus from the Ratol paste, in her body.
Rat poison is slow to act but seriously damages the liver, said the inspector.
This was Albin Benny's second attempt to kill his family
Apparently, he had earlier mixed Ratol paste in chicken curry but it did not work. "So he checked Google to find the right dosage," said the police officer.
Internet search on rat poison
As part of the investigation, Vellarikkundu police reportedly sealed the house and managed to get hold of Benny's mobile phone. As he stayed in a relatives house, the police kept a strict watch on him.
When the police checked the search history on his phone, they found that he had Google-searched information on rat poison and how it could affect the human body and children.
The police then checked shops in the locality and found the shop from where bought rat poison on July 29.
Police explain the motive
Police said that even though Benny had completed an automobile mechanic course in Kottayam, he had not looked for a job. His father used to apprehend him for this.
"He did not enjoy a good relationship with his sister either," said the news report.
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The police officer said: "Albin Benny spent a lot of money. And, had several female friends from whom he used to borrow money from to live a fast life. He found his father and the rest of the family a hindrance to his lifestyle," said Premsadan.
The officer said Albin wanted to usurp the land that his father, a farmer, owned, not to work on it, but, to sell it off and make money.
Reportedly, the official added that chances of his father surviving are low.
