Sulur sexual assault and murder case: witnesses identify prime accused

Crime scene adjacent to the Kannampalayam tank bunker where a 10-year-old victim was found murdered on 22 May 2026. Photo credit: Siva Saravanan S.

Two eyewitnesses on Tuesday (June 2, 2026) identified the main accused in the recent sexual assault-cum-murder of a 10-year-old girl near Sulur in Coimbatore district, reliable sources said.

The main accused, K. Karthi (35), who lived in Pallapalayam near Sulur, was produced along with other persons in the lineup at the Coimbatore Central Jail on Tuesday.

A Magistrate appointed by a special court to hear cases registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO) conducted a trial identification parade in a designated area in the jail. A report on the key progress in the matter will be filed by the magistrate of the POCSO court.

Two eyewitnesses in the case, who claimed to have seen Karthi taking the minor girl on a two-wheeler on the evening of May 21, identified him in a line-up that included other persons, sources said.

One of them allegedly saw Karthi taking the girl away from her neighborhood in Pallapalayam after luring her out and offering chocolates. A second eyewitness is said to have seen Karthi with the girl in transit before he took her to the crime scene – a thicket on private land adjacent to the Kannampalayam tank, a large body of water. He traveled about 2.5 km from Pallapalayam to the tank with the girl.

As Karthi sustained fractures to his right arm and right leg, allegedly while trying to escape from the police before being arrested, the line-up for the parade was arranged to leave no room for eyewitnesses to identify him based on his injuries.

Karthi also sustained several other injuries after he was attacked by four convicts in the jail on May 30. He was admitted to Coimbatore Medical College Hospital and was discharged on Monday (June 1, 2026).

The investigation team has moved the court seeking custody of Karthi and his accomplice R. Mohan (31) of Pallapalayam. The POCSO court is expected to hear the plea on Wednesday (June 3, 2026) or Thursday (June 4, 2026), according to police sources. The police intend to file charges in the case within 30 days of their arrest.

Published – 02 Jun 2026 19:48 IST