The State Police on Monday recorded the statements of two legislators in connection with the abduction and sexual assault on a female actor in Kochi in February. Officials identified them as M. Mukesh of the CPI(M) and Anwar Sadath of the Congress. Armed with separate questionnaires, plainclothesmen of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) interviewed the legislators at their rooms in the MLA quarters here. Officials reportedly quizzed Mr. Sadat about his association with actor Dileep, who is now a prime suspect in the case.
Mr. Sadath later told reporters that he had a long friendship with the actor. They had no business relationship nor was he aware of the actor’s dealings in the film industry.
Mr. Mukesh said he told the police that he had employed the main accused in the case, ‘Pulsar’ Suni, as his chauffeur for over a year. Consequently, Suni got acquainted with his family and friends. The MLA said he had no inkling of Suni’s alleged criminal inclinations or his past.
The SIT is now probing the suspected larger conspiracy to commit the crime.
Suni’s contention that Dileep had contracted him to assault the actor and photograph her unclothed had impelled the SIT to probe personal and professional rivalries in the entertainment industry.
Officials privy to the investigation said the police were also cross-checking other nuggets of information it received about the crime from jail house informants.
The laborious sifting of cellphone evidence, including the furtive calls purportedly made by Suni from prison, has yielded several leads that were being actively pursued.
They said the emerging contours of the offence matched that of a typical hate crime with elements of potential blackmail and extortion. The challenge is to shore up credible evidence to substantiate the prosecution case in court.
The SIT is investigating whether the instigators of the crime had received video evidence of the assault. The SIT has to present a convincing case against the suspects when the High Court considers Dileep’s bail plea on Thursday.