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Koodathayi cyanide killings

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The Koodathayi cyanide killings were a series of unnatural deaths which were later regarded as murders, that occurred in Koodathayi in Kerala, India. The crimes were investigated in late 2019, involving the mystery of 6 deaths over a span of 14 years. The criminal cases drew considerable media and public interest to Kerala, and eventually led to the arrest of Jolly Joseph.[1][2][3][4]

Koodathayi cyanide killings
Duration2002–2016
LocationKoodathayi, Kozhikode, Kerala, India
TypeCyanide poisoning
Casualties
Annamma Thomas, Tom Thomas, Roy Thomas, Mathew Manjayadil, Alphine Shaju and Sili Shaju
Deaths6
InquiriesK. G. Simon, Rural SP, Kerala Police
Arrests3 (Till 15 October 2019)
Suspects
  • Jolly Joseph
  • M. S. Mathew
  • Praji Kumar
ChargesMurder

Timeline of the crimes

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In 2002, Annamma Thomas (aged 57), the mother-in-law of the accused, drank a glass of water after returning home from a walk. Immediately afterwards, she began to feel uneasy and dizzy, eventually collapsing on the floor. She was taken to the hospital where she later died, and the doctors declared that she had suffered a heart attack. In 2008, Tom Thomas (aged 66), Annamma's husband and Jolly's father-in-law, passed away after swooning and collapsing. Jolly Joseph was allegedly present at the spot on both occasions.

In 2011, Roy Thomas (aged 40), Jolly's then husband, died after consuming his dinner of rice and Bengal gram curry. He was found dead in a bathroom which was locked from the inside. The cause of death was then ruled as suicide due to financial issues as the post-mortem report showed traces of poison. Roy's maternal uncle, Mathew Manjayadil, called for a post-mortem report and an inquiry into Roy's cause of death.

In 2014, Mathew (aged 68) swooned and died after Jolly allegedly gave him poison-laden whisky. The deceased Roy has a cousin named Shaju Zachariah.

The same year (2014), Shaju's two-year-old daughter, Alphine Shaju, died after "choking on food".

In 2016, Jolly allegedly gave Sily Shaju (aged 41), Alphine's mother, a mushroom capsule, which Jolly convinced Sily that would help her with energy and depression and Sily died on the spot soon after.

In 2018, Rojo Thomas came down to Koodathayi and filed a series of RTI applications. From the government hospital, he received a copy of the autopsy report of his brother's body. “When he read the report, he found out that what Jolly told us was wrong. Jolly told us he had food at 3.30 pm and hadn’t had food after that. But it was clear in the post-mortem report that he had rice and Bengal gram curry at 8.30 pm,” said family friend Mohammad Bawa. “Acute cyanide poisoning can result in death in a matter of seconds. Cyanide does not accumulate in the body and so it is rare to encounter it in slow death cases,” explained Dr V. V. Pillay, head of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences in Kochi.[5]

Suspects

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Jolly Joseph who was 47 at the time of her arrest in 2019, was the prime suspect in the murder of six members of the family she married into. It was Renji Thomas, Roy Thomas's sister, who complained to the police about the six unnatural deaths whose investigation led to Jolly Joseph. Following her arrest in October 2019, Jolly has confessed to using cyanide to kill the six aforementioned people. She allegedly obtained the cyanide with the help of M. S. Mathew and Praji Kumar, who have also been arrested.[6]

Jolly Joseph

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Jolly was originally from Kattappana, Idukki district, and a first year college dropout. She married her first husband Roy Thomas in 1997. Jolly and Roy had two sons, now aged 19 and 24. According to her neighbour, Jolly lied to fellow villagers about being an M.Com.(Master's degree in Commerce) graduate and working at the prestigious NIT Calicut. Her whereabouts during her daily outings to her fake job remained uncertain. In 2011, her husband Roy Thomas died under mysterious circumstances. Following the death of Shaju Zachariah's wife in 2016, Jolly married Shaju.[5] Jolly had been described as "jovial, friendly, jolly and pious" by people who knew her.[7]

M. S. Mathew

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According to the police, Mathew, a jewellery shop employee who was also a distant relative and lover of Jolly, he was the one who provided Jolly with the cyanide. He reportedly told the police that he procured the cyanide from Praji Kumar after giving him two bottles of alcohol and ₹5,000.[8] Mathew claims that Jolly asked him for cyanide to kill a stray dog that comes near her house.[9]

Praji Kumar

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Praji Kumar was a goldsmith who allegedly gave M. S. Mathew the cyanide. He stated that he assumed the poison was being bought to kill rats.[10]

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Antony Perumbavoor announced his upcoming movie would be based on the Koodathayi incident, leading role play by Mohanlal,[11] synchronized actress Dini Daniel launched a poster through social media of her new movie based the same topic in which she plays as Jolly Joseph.[12][13]

Malayalam entertainment-oriented TV channels are airing the same topic in their serials but using a different method of storytelling fencing against legal issues.[14]

In November 2019, Kairali TV released a serial based on the Koodathayi case. Serial actress Divya Sreedhar had played the role of Dolly, a woman who is a psychopath. Krithyam was the first Malayalam television serial that portrayed the Koodathayi incident.

In December 2019, Sony TV's crime series Crime Patrol presented 3 episodes case based on Koodathayi incident.[15]

A Malayalam serial named Koodathayi was aired on Flowers TV based on the series killing incident. Actress Muktha played the role of killer in the Malayalam serial. Actors like Mallika Sukumaran, Kollam Thulasi, Dayyana Hamid etc., played other roles in that serial.[16][17]

On 7 September 2020, Spotify launched a ten-episode original podcast, Death, Lies & Cyanide narrated by the journalist Sashi Kumar, based on the murders.[18]

Netflix released a documentary film titled Curry & Cyanide: The Jolly Joseph Case based on the case. It is directed by Christo Tomy, and written by Shalini Ushadevi.[19]

References

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  1. ^ "Koodathayi cyanide murders: The story so far". OnManorama. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  2. ^ "സീരിയൽ കില്ലറായ സ്ത്രീകളുടെ മനഃശാസ്ത്രം; ഡോക്ടർ പറയുന്നു" [The psychology of women as serial killers; Says the doctor]. ManoramaOnline (in Malayalam). Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  3. ^ Bhagat, Shalini Venugopal; Abi-Habib, Maria (19 October 2019). "Police Say Cyanide Soup and 6 Deaths Point to a Serial Killer". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 20 October 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  4. ^ Julia Hollingsworth; Manveena Suri; Ananthu Sureshkumar (9 November 2019). "Mom, churchgoer, chatty neighbor ... suspected serial killer". CNN. Archived from the original on 11 November 2019. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Kerala serial killer Jolly: Everything you need to know". gulfnews.com. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  6. ^ "Using cyanide, Kerala woman murdered six members of family over 14 years, say police". The Indian Express. 6 October 2019. Archived from the original on 24 December 2023. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  7. ^ "Jovial, friendly, pious: Shocked Kerala town recalls its 'serial killer' who killed 6 people over 14 years". gulfnews.com. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  8. ^ "Two bottles of alcohol & Rs 5,000: How co-suspect in Koodathayi murders got cyanide". OnManorama. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  9. ^ "Jolly Joseph's relative confessed he got cyanide for her for Rs 5000, say cops". www.thenewsminute.com. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  10. ^ Daily, Keralakaumudi. "Cyanide was given to kill greater bandicoot stray dog, don't have any role in conspiracy, says Praji Kumar". Keralakaumudi Daily. Archived from the original on 13 June 2020. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  11. ^ "Kerala cyanide murders to become movie, Mohanlal to play key role". The Week. Archived from the original on 18 October 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  12. ^ "ഡിനി ഡാനിയേൽ നായികയാകുന്ന "കൂടത്തായി'; ഫസ്റ്റ്ലുക്ക് എത്തി : Cinema News" [Fidelukku: Koodiyattayi starring Dini Daniel]. deepika.com (in Malayalam).
  13. ^ "Mohanlal to play investigation officer in Koodathai murder case inspired thriller? - Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 October 2019. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  14. ^ "ടി.വി സീരിയലിന് കൂടത്തായി കൂട്ടക്കൊലയുമായി സാമ്യമെന്ന് പൊലീസ് ഹൈകോടതിയിൽ | Madhyamam". 3 February 2020. Archived from the original on 17 June 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  15. ^ Crime Patrol Satark Season 2 - Ep 100 - Full Episode - 2nd December, 2019, retrieved 28 February 2024
  16. ^ "Koodathayi Serial Resumes On Flowers TV - HC Allowed Channel To Air Content". 9 August 2020. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  17. ^ "Malayalam Tv Serial Koodathayi Synopsis Aired On Flowers TV Channel". nettv4u. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  18. ^ Bhavani, Divya Kala (7 September 2020). "A journalistic podcast on the infamous 'cyanide woman' of Kerala". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 17 September 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  19. ^ "The true story of the Jolly Joseph case, now subject of a Netflix documentary". The Indian Express. 23 December 2023. Archived from the original on 24 December 2023. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
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