Chennai, June 6 (IANS) Four special investigation teams have been constituted to probe the shocking discovery of a dismembered body inside a suitcase abandoned at Chennai’s Perambur Railway Station, police said.
The teams, comprising two units led by the Pulianthope Deputy Commissioner of Police and two under the Perambur Railway Deputy Superintendent of Police, have been tasked with identifying the victim and tracking down those responsible for the brutal murder.
The case came to light in the morning when railway police were alerted about a blue trolley suitcase lying unattended near the staircase leading down from Platform 4, from where suburban electric trains depart towards Avadi, Tiruvallur and Arakkonam.
Passengers reported that the suitcase had been left at the spot for a long time, causing inconvenience to commuters.
Initially suspecting that a passenger had accidentally left behind the luggage while boarding a train, railway police attempted to move it.
However, the suitcase was unusually heavy, prompting officers to inspect its contents. Upon opening it, police were horrified to find the mutilated body of a young man, believed to be around 30 years old.
The body had been wrapped in a red polythene sheet, placed inside a sack and locked inside the suitcase. The victim’s head, hands and legs had been severed, with the limbs cut up to the knees.
Investigators said the blood had coagulated and the body showed signs of decomposition, indicating that the murder had taken place at least two days earlier.
The victim’s identity remains unknown.
A sniffer dog, Jhansi, was brought to the scene and tracked a scent trail from the platform to the Perambur Carriage Works railway station area, but failed to locate any suspects.
CCTV footage examined by investigators reportedly revealed that two men arrived at the station in an autorickshaw, carried the suitcase onto Platform 4 and abandoned it before fleeing in the same vehicle.
Police suspect the victim was murdered elsewhere before the body was dismembered and transported to the railway station.
Investigators are also searching for the severed head and limbs, which they believe may have been disposed of at different locations.
The body has been sent to Kilpauk Government Medical College Hospital for post-mortem examination. Police are also checking missing-person complaints across Chennai and neighbouring districts as the investigation gathers pace.
—IANS
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