After almost two weeks, the Kerala police made a minor breakthrough in the Valakom case by identifying the person who first spotted the RV Higher Secondary School teacher, Mr. R. Krishnakumar, in an injured condition on September 27 night.
Though sources in the police department maintain that the person had only witnessed the teacher in a bleeding state on the road, there are unconfirmed reports that admitted that he saw the teacher being thrown out of a White Maruti Alto car.
The police did not reveal the identity of the person though it is known that he is a native of Kollam district.
It was after coming across reports that the police will soon release the sketch of the first eyewitness that the person called up a police officer he knew on Sunday morning and informed that he was the one who first spotted the teacher. Subsequently the officers on the special investigation team quizzed him.
He told the cops that he was driving his motorcycle towards Nilamel on September 27 night when he spotted a person in a bleeding state on the road side.
He immediately stopped the vehicle and alerted some persons who were coming out of a shop about 20 metres away. Those persons had told him that a White Maruti Alto car had just sped away.
Subsequently he went a few kilometers towards Nilamel but could not spot the car. On the way, he saw a police highway patrol team and informed them about the incident.
Meanwhile, the director-general of police, Mr. Jacob Punnoose, told reporters here that the investigation was progressing and the police have got definite leads about the incident.He also said that the petition given by Mr. Krishnakumar’s wife was being taken seriously.
The police had initially toyed with the theory that Mr Krishnakumar had been attacked by a gang which mutilated his genitals and rammed an iron rod up his rectum.
However, a team of doctors who examined him later came to the conclusion that a vehicle travelling at high speed may have hit him, causing the injuries.
The eyewitness account may help police sift the facts.