CCTV visuals aided arrest of doctor in airgun attack case

CCTV visuals, phone calls, and digital footprint led the city police to the Kollam doctor who was taken into custody in connection with an air gun attack on a woman near West Fort three days ago.

The accused Deepthimol Jose has been remanded in custody, the Vanchiyoor police said.

The police had initial suspicions about the attack being motivated by a grudge against the husband of the victim V.S. Shini.

Shini was injured in the right arm after Deepthimol, who was masked, shot her with the air gun on Sunday morning during a purported door delivery. Deepthimol reportedly asked for Shini before firing at her and fleeing.

The police said Shini’s husband Sujith who works in the Maldives was earlier employed in a hospital where Deepthimol worked. The relationship between the two went awry and Deepthimol decided to take revenge by attacking Shini.

The police who had examined CCTV visuals of the masked assailant’s escape widened their search and zereod in on a vehicle with a fake number plate heading towards Kollam. Other footage also helped establish Deepthimol’s identity. Details of calls to her phone were recovered. The investigation also focussed on her digital footprint and found she had purchased an air gun online sometime ago and was learning how to use it.