‘Planned for 2 months on Insta’: How girl, 3 friends killed grandpa over money for iPhone

A 13-year-old girl allegedly orchestrated her grandfather's murder with three male friends to obtain money

KOTTAYAM: The 13-year-old girl got her friends to murder her 67-year-old maternal grandfather at Karuvatta allegedly to raise money for an iPhone for her and a motorcycle for her friend, as per police's chargesheet filed before the juvenile justice board (JJB). The 740-page chargesheet names four juveniles as accused - two of them aged 17, one 16 years and the 13-year-old girl. Police described it a rare case as all four are aged under 18. According to the police, the three boys entered the elderly man's house on Aug 15 night through a ventilation opening after lifting the bathroom roof tile. They allegedly stuffed cloth into the man's mouth and pressed a bedsheet over his face to render him unconscious. They then tied his hands to his thighs with a dhoti and bound his legs with a towel. They then stomped on him and beat him on the neck and head, leading to his death, but no weapons were used, the chargesheet stated. The accused allegedly stole four-and-a-half sovereigns of gold from the house. The crime came to light on Aug 17, and the accused were taken into custody the same day. The investigators said the boys showed the murder scene to the girl over a WhatsApp call. The crime was allegedly planned over two months, with the accused staying in touch through Instagram. All chats were recovered from the accused's phones; information was sought from Meta for verification and the report will be submitted to the JJB, police said. Police recovered six SIM cards from the accused's phones, one of which was active only on the day of the murder, the chargesheet said. The chargesheet cites it as evidence of precise planning. The SIM details were retrieved with help from cyber experts.

The case lists 87 witnesses, 98 documents and 12 material objects. Six CCTV clips are cited as key evidence, showing the accused alighting at Haripad railway station, reaching the house and leaving after the act. The prosecution has applied for the three boys to be tried as adults. The JJB will decide after hearing both sides and examining the gravity of the offence, the accused's social background and their mental state. The girl will be tried by the JJB.