Erode elderly couple murder: Three men arrested, confess involvement in 2024 Tiruppur triple murder too

Inspector General of Police (West Zone) T. Senthil Kumar (centre) addressing the media on the arrest of three accused involved in the murder of an elderly couple in Erode, on Monday. Deputy Inspector General of Police (Coimbatore Range) V. Sasi Mohan (left) and District Superintendent of Police A. Sujatha (right) are also seen.
| Photo Credit: M. Govarthan

Three men have been arrested in connection with the brutal murder of an elderly couple on April 28, 2025, and the looting of 10.75 sovereigns of gold jewellery in Erode district. The police said on Monday (May 19) that the arrested men have also “admitted” to their involvement in a triple murder case that took place in Semalaigoundanpalayam, Tiruppur district, on November 28, 2024. The latter case is being investigated by the CB-CID.

The accused have been identified as P. Aachiappan, 48, N. Madeswaran, 52, and R. Ramesh, 54, all residents of Arachalur in Erode district.

The bodies of the victims Ramasamy, 72, and Bakkiyam, 63, of Megaraiyan Thottam, Uchimedu, near Sivagiri, were found in their home on May 1, three days after they were murdered.

The crime had triggered strong reactions from Opposition party leaders, including AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami.

The Sivagiri police had registered a case under Sections 332(a), 103, and 311 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. They had formed 12 special teams to crack the case, while over 600 police personnel had aided in the probe. CCTV footage and call detail records (CDRs) had been analysed, and inquiries had been carried out among local and migrant farm workers, former convicts, and other suspects.

How the accused were nabbed

On May 17, during a vehicle check in Arachalur, a special team apprehended one of the suspects, and subsequently arrested two others. All three of them were taken to the Kadathur police station in the Gobichettipalayam sub-division, where they allegedly confessed to the crime. The police said they “admitted” to targeting the couple who lived alone. The assailants attacked the couple with a wooden log, severed the ear and a finger of the woman, and fled with the stolen jewellery.

The police said they recovered the stolen gold jewellery, a mobile phone belonging to the victim, three two-wheelers used by the accused, the wooden log used in the attack, and a pair of hand gloves. A goldsmith, Gyanasekaran of Chennimalai Palayam, who had melted the stolen jewellery and returned it to the accused, was also arrested.

Addressing the media at the district police office, Inspector General of Police (West Zone) T. Senthil Kumar said CCTV footage played a crucial role in identifying and arresting the accused. He revealed that Aachiappan, a coconut trader, had visited the couple a few weeks before the crime and discovered that they lived alone. On the night of April 28, at around 10:30 p.m., he and his accomplices hid near the house. At midnight, when the woman stepped outside, they attacked her. Her husband came out upon hearing the noise, and they killed him before fleeing with the jewellery and his mobile phone.

Triple murder

The IGP further said the trio had also “confessed” to the triple murder in Tiruppur district, in which Deivasigamani, 78, his wife Alamathal, 74, and their son Senthil Kumar, 44, were killed in November last year. The accused stole 5.5 sovereigns of gold jewellery and a mobile phone during that incident. “Their involvement in this and other cases will be confirmed after taking them into police custody,” he added. The trio had earlier been acquitted in five robbery cases in 2015 and had not been involved in any recorded criminal activity since.

All four accused, including the goldsmith, were produced before a court in Elumathur and remanded in judicial custody.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (Coimbatore Range) V. Sasi Mohan and District Superintendent of Police A. Sujatha were present at the media briefing.