Mom Covers Up 7-Year-Old Girl's Murder After Lover Kills The Child In Inebriated State

A 30-year-old widow and her lover were arrested Sunday in connection with the death of the woman's 7-year-old daughter. The duo allegedly threw the girl's body in a river after the man murdered her in an inebriated state, police said.

The suspects, identified as V. Vijayalakshmi and her distant relative R. Vetrivel, were arrested from Thanjavur, a city in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Both the suspects admitted to the crime during interrogation by the police, reported The Hindu.

According to police sources, Vijayalakshmi, along with her kids, moved to Thanjavur after her husband's death, and was in a relationship with Vetrivel.

Investigators found that Vetrivel often visited Vijayalakshmi's house in an inebriated state. On Saturday night, Vetrivel was intoxicated and got into an argument with Vijayalakshmi after she avoided his sexual advances as her daughter was awake. In a fit of rage, Vetrivel started beating Vijayalakshmi, and her 7-year-old child allegedly intervened in the scuffle.

Enraged, Vetrivel pushed the girl to the ground and assaulted her, police said. The child developed a seizure in the attack and was rushed to a hospital where she was pronounced brought dead.

The couple then reportedly tried to dispose of the child's body in a burial ground without anyone noticing them. However, after a failed attempt to secretly bury the child's body, they threw it in a river with the help of a man, identified as Sabarinathan, Times of India reported.

The neighbors who got suspicious reported the incident to the police and the couple got arrested. Investigators are searching for Sabarinathan who is on the run, according to the outlet.

The police have also initiated a search operation to recover the girl's body.

In July, a woman and her paramour from Ahmedabad, a city in the western Indian state of Gujarat, were arrested after the duo admitted they murdered the woman's 5-year-old child who was reportedly missing for three years. The boy's mother and her uncle admitted that they strangled the boy to death after he accidentally discovered an affair between them. The couple initially tried to burn the child's body and later threw his half-burnt body parts in a canal.