Chennai: In one of the most gruesome murders that the city has witnessed in the last century, a young trans man, won the confidence of his schooldays’ classmate and chained her legs and hands before slitting her throat and setting her ablaze.
The chilling incident took place on Saturday night in suburban Ponmar, a day before victim Nandhini, a techie, was to turn 24.
Carefully executed murder
Police investigation has revealed numbing details of the carefully planned and executed murder about which the victim had not even a whiff of hint.
“The accused was born as a girl and named Pandi Maheshwari. She studied with Nandhini from class 1 to 10 in Madurai. Thereafter Maheshwari underwent a sex surgery and became a trans man and assumed the identity of Vetrimaran. Nandhini remained in touch with him as a good friend even finding him a job in the software company in Perungudi in Chennai in which she was working. She did not realise that Vetrimaran had developed a liking for her and was possessive about her,” a police officer said on Monday, based on preliminary investigations.
Victim had turned down Vetrimaran's proposal
Vetrimaran, the officer said, was unable to digest the fact that Nandhini was friendly with a male colleague. She turned down Vetrimaran’s proposal to get married.
“Against this backdrop, Vetrimaran on Saturday took Nandhini out promising her a birthday surprise. Unaware of his dark plans, she accompanied him to the Elliot’s Beach in Besant Nagar and to a temple. He also took her to an orphanage. Later, he took her to a secluded spot in Ponmar and tied her legs and hands with an iron chain claiming it was a surprise. To her shock, he then stabbed her and doused her with petrol, which he was carrying in a bottle inside his bag, and set her ablaze,” the officer said.
Vetrimaran confesses to crime
Vetrimaran fled the spot hoping she would be dead. “However, hearing her screams some people managed to reach the spot and douse the fire with sand and fire. Nandhini, who had sustained severe burn injuries, managed to give Vetrimaran’s phone number. The people believed it was her friend’s number and called him. Vetrimaran arrived there pretending he was oblivious of the situation and accompanied the police to the hospital. It was only when we started grilling him that he revealed his role in the gruesome murder,” the officer said.
Police arrested Vetrimaran and remanded him in judicial custody.
