Jayanandan

Background

Jayanandan, also known as “Ripper” Jayanandan, was a serial killer from Trichur. He was accused of seven murders committed during a span of 35 robberies in and around Trichur Ernakulam border areas.

Jayanandan was born in Mala district of Thrissur.

The offence

Jayanandan was accused of seven murders involving theft of gold, money and other valuables. The murders included double murders.

Jayanandan was accused of:

• A double murder at Perinjanam in October 2004, in which he assassinated Kalapurackkal Sahadevan and his wife Nirmala to steal 11.25 sovereigns of gold.
• The murder of Elikutty of Vadekkakara, for which he was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for life without parole by the District Court, Ernakulam, in 2011.
• The murder of Devaki (described as “Baby” alias Devaki in one account) and an attack on her husband Ramakrishnan on October 2, 2006.
• The murder of 45-year-old Jose in Mala police station limits in September 2003 during a burglary, when he struck Jose, who was sleeping, with a crowbar and killed him, then decamped with Rs 17,000 and a video cassette player.
• The killing of 51-year-old Nabeesa in March 2004 during a burglary in Mala police station limits, after she woke up hearing the noise and came out, and during which he also killed two more women—23-year-old Fousiya and 28-year-old Noorjahan—and two children.
• The murder of Sahadevan (64) and Nirmala (58) in October 2004 at their house at Puthenvelikara/Perinjanam in the Puthenvelikara police station limits / Mathilakam police station limits described in the accounts, after which he decamped with gold ornaments weighing 11 sovereigns.
• The murder of Subhashakan, a security guard at a Kerala State Beverages Corporation outlet at North Paravoor in August 2005, when Subhashakan challenged him and Jayanandan struck him on the head with an iron rod and killed him.
• A robbery and assault at a house in Kodungallur police station limits described in one account in which Jayanandan attacked Aravindaksha Panicker and wife Omana Panicker causing grievous injuries to both, besides robbing 18-sovereign gold ornaments.

A CBI special court judge, Jose Thomas, declared Jayanandan guilty of murdering 51-year-old Devaki and attacking her 60-year-old husband Ramakrishnan on October 2, 2006. The special court observed it was one of the rarest of rare cases, and the judge said that the act of cutting off the hands of the victim to rob her after murdering her was barbaric and brutal, and that if death sentence was not awarded it would result in people losing faith in the judicial system.

During police interrogation, Jayanandan confessed that he committed seven murders during previous robbery attempts. He also told cops he killed Devaki and poured kerosene at the place and left after leaving the cooking gas on. Investigators said he confessed to seven murders during robbery attempts.

In the Perinjanam incident in October 2004, Jayanandan robbed Kalapurackkal Sahadevan (64) and his wife Nirmala (58) of 11.25 sovereigns of gold and bludgeoned them to death.

In the Kodungallur incident, Jayanandan attacked Aravindaksha Panicker and wife Omana Panicker and caused grievous injuries to both, besides robbing 18-sovereign gold ornaments.

Investigation

Investigators said evidence suggested that Jayanandan was “hiding in plain sight” on sparsely populated islets that dot the maze of inland waterways and backwater lagoons near Kodungalloor in Thrissur district.

The police said Jayanandan had called his wife from a remotely located telephone booth in a coastal locality.

The police also said that Jayanandan attempted in vain to waylay a local resident he suspected to have an extramarital relationship with a relative of his in Mala, and that when the attempt failed he vented his anger by allegedly setting the man’s motorbike on fire.

The police said Jayanandan could be hiding in one of the hundreds of brackish water shrimp farms (“chemmeen kettu”) in the area. They described that usually not more than two persons tend the farms and many sleep in makeshift huts built on stilts to prevent theft of farm produce.

Local MLA T. N. Pratapan joined the police in a midnight check of scores of such farms in the locality. Later, the police planned a mass search backed by 150 local people. Assistant Commissioner K.E. Baiju was heading the search.

A special team was constituted under deputy commissioner of police A Srinivas to track down the escaped convicts. Crime detachment assistant commissioner K E Baiju and control room (traffic) circle inspector A Pramod Kumar were also part of the team. Alexander Jacob, director general of police (prisons), said an alert had been sounded across the state and their pictures had been flashed in TV channels.

Arrest and capture

Jayanandan was arrested by Kerala police in Nellayi, a few kilometres away from his native village in Thrissur district on September 9, 2013. The police detained Jayanandan in the afternoon while he was waiting to get his bicycle repaired at Nellayi junction.

The accounts described that he was arrested from near the National Highway at Nandhikkara, near here, on Monday.

The police arrested his cellmate, “Oopa” Prakash, on June 19 (described as 40/44 years old in different accounts). Prakash was serving time for burglary and escaped from jail when he had just a few months to complete his sentence for simple theft. Prakash told police that after escaping from the jail, both had camped almost two days in wilderness near the Veli railway station in Thiruvananthapuram. He also said that before they split ways, Jayanandan had briefly revealed his plans: the “Ripper” proposed they steal a boat from the nearby Kadhinamkulam lagoon and live off the land abutting the State’s chain of brackish water lagoons. The account also stated that Jayanandan spent much of his youth fishing the lagoons near his house in Mala.

Escape

Jayanandan escaped from the high security Poojappura Central Prison in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday, described as June 11, 2013 in the accounts. Authorities suspected that he and his cellmate had got out during Sunday night.

The Times of India account said the prison authorities became aware of the incident when other prisoners noticed a long rope made of dhoties tied together hanging from the high wall near the prison hospital. The prison authorities stated that the convicts climbed the wall, which was over 25 foot high, using poles that supported a makeshift shaft to store utensils of the prison hospital. The authorities said the convicts hoodwinked the wardens by placing dummies made from pillows to create an impression that they were asleep inside their cells. The account said Jayanandan had been sentenced to death in two cases: in 2007 for the murder of 51-year-old Baby alias Devaki of Puthanvelikkara and in 2008 for the murder of Kalapurackal Sahadevan (64) and his wife Nirmala (58). The account also stated he tried to escape from jail while imprisoned in Viyyur Central Prison, and that he was moved to Kannur prison from where he escaped in 2010. It also stated that he was later arrested from Ooty.

Another account described that the cops suspect the jailbreak occurred after midnight, and that the fugitives had cut through the cylindrical “dead latch” of the padlocked cell’s grilled door, possibly with a hacksaw blade, and scaled a relatively low wall of the block. It described that they proceeded to the prison’s infirmary and stole bed sheets and clothes left out to dry on clotheslines. It stated they assembled a crude ladder from wooden poles to scale the wall, and once on top they used a rope fashioned out of knotted bed sheets and clothes to abseil down. It also stated that the escapees made up their cots inside the cell with vessels and pillows to make it appear as if they were sleeping. It further stated that the prison’s extensive surveillance camera network was down at the time of the escape, purportedly due to a power outage.

A superintendent of Central Prison was quoted describing a road outside the wall and stated it was less used, and “nobody saw them escaping,” and he described negligence on the part of officers failing to find out the escape plan. The same account said that action was taken against eight persons in connection with the escape. It stated that five officers—including deputy jailor Rajeev and four head wardens—were placed under suspension, and that three guards working under a daily wages scheme were terminated.

The Deccanherald account described that Jayanandan and Prakash fled during the early hours of Monday. It stated that the prison authorities came to know of the incident after bamboo sticks were spotted in an area that housed the prison hospital, and that the wardens found the prisoners had fled after breaking their cell’s lock. It stated that authorities launched a manhunt.

The account also stated that Jayanandan was booked in five murder cases, including that of Baby in October 2006, and that he had been sentenced to death over the killing. It also stated that Jayanandan was incarcerated after being convicted in vehicle theft cases for the cellmate’s conviction.

In one account, Jayanandan was described as having repeatedly hit headlines for the manner in which he killed people who came in the way of his thefts. Another account described he often used iron rods and crowbars to bludgeon victims to death.

The accounts also stated he was in 2010 escaped from Kannur Central Prison and was later nabbed in Ooty, and that he also tried to escape from the Viyyoor Prison.

Trial and sentencing

Death sentence in 2007 and June 2008

Thrissur principal sessions judge sentenced Jayanandan to death by hanging in June 2008 for the double murder at Perinjanam in October 2004 involving Kalapurackkal Sahadevan and his wife Nirmala. The accounts stated he was sentenced to death in 2007 for the murder of 51-year-old Baby alias Devaki of Puthanvelikkara.

Life imprisonment for murder of Elikutty (Vadakkekkara)

The District Court, Ernakulam, sentenced Jayanandan to rigorous imprisonment for life without parole for the murder of Elikutty of Vadekkakara in 2011.

An account from The Times of India described that Additional sessions court of Ernakulam sentenced 39-year-old K P Jayanandan from Mala to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and fined him Rs 50,000 for murdering Elikutty, a resident of Vadakkekkara, after Elikutty was attacked on May 5, 2005.

In that account, when Elikutty woke up, Jayanandan attacked her with an iron wok turner on the head. It stated that Elikutty’s daughter and son-in-law woke up hearing the scuffle and saw Jayanandan escaping, with the old woman lying in a pool of blood with the wok turner stuck deep inside her head. It stated that police charged Jayanandan with murder, robbery, and trespassing into the house based on the statements of Elikutty’s daughter and son-in-law.

Death sentence by CBI special court (October 2, 2006 case)

A CBI special court sentenced Jayanandan to death on November 2 (as stated in the account) for murdering 60-year-old Devaki and robbing her bangles after cutting off her hands.

A separate account from The Times of India described that on November 3, 2011, a CBI special court on Wednesday sentenced the 39-year-old serial killer to death for robbing and murdering a 51-year-old woman. It stated that the special court judge, Jose Thomas, declared Jayanandan guilty on Tuesday of murdering 51-year-old Devaki and attacking her 60-year-old husband Ramakrishnan on October 2, 2006. It repeated that during police interrogation, Jayanandan confessed he committed seven murders during previous robbery attempts. It also repeated that the seven murders included the double murder at Perinjanam.

Other sentencing referenced (escape and prior prison history)

The accounts stated that Jayanandan was kept in Pujapura central Jail awaiting execution until June 2013. They also stated he tried to escape from jail while he was imprisoned in Viyyur Central Prison, and that he was then moved to Kannur prison from where he escaped in 2010. It also stated he was later arrested from Ooty.

Aftermath and prison officials disciplined

Eight persons were suspended in connection with the June 2013 escape of the two prisoners, including deputy jailor T.R. Rajeev and chief warder P.V. Abraham, the head warders Abdul Rasheed, Rajeev Kumar and Prathap Chandran, and three temporary workers.

The same account stated that Jayanandan’s cellmate “Oopa” Prakash was arrested on June 19, and that the police let Prakash be at large for several days, hoping Jayanandan would make contact with him, before arresting him. It stated Prakash’s interrogation revealed that they camped almost two days in wilderness near Veli railway station and survived on ripe cashew fruit and germinated nuts after their break-out.

The account also included a planned mass search by police in the shrimp farm area involving 150 local people and said Assistant Commissioner K.E. Baiju was heading the search.

Other details

The accounts described Jayanandan as 45 years old in June 2013 and 39 years old in the sentencing context. One account stated he called his wife from a remotely located telephone booth in a coastal locality. Another account stated he attempted to waylay a local resident he suspected to have an extramarital relationship with a relative of his in Mala, and then allegedly set the man’s motorbike on fire.

A Deccanherald account described Jayanandan as incarcerated after being convicted in vehicle theft cases for the cellmate’s conviction, and it described his cellmate Prakash as incarcerated after being convicted in vehicle theft cases and incarcerated after being convicted in vehicle theft cases (as stated). Another account described Prakash as serving a three-year term in prison. One account stated the fugitives might have used hacksaw blades to cut through the lock. Another account described prison surveillance camera network was down at the time of the escape due to a power outage. One account described that the prison wall had been fortified and topped with an electrified barbed wire fence in 2011 to house a terror suspect Thadiyantavide Nazeer.

Jayanandan was described as an accused in eight murder cases and as accused in 14 burglary cases in the accounts.