In a shocking incident, a suitcase with a woman’s severed body parts was recovered by the police in Thoraipakkam area of Chennai on Thursday.
The incident came to light after a local noticed blood dripping from the suitcase and informed the police around 5.30 am.
The police have arrested a man named Manikandan of Sivaganga district in connection with the murder.
His residence was 100 metres away from the spot where the suitcase was found.
The victim has been identified as 32-year-old Deepa alias Vellaiammal from Madhavaram district.
According to the police, during the interrogation, Manikandan revealed that he murdered Deepa using a hammer after a quarrel broke out as she was demanding more money from him.
Later, he chopped her body into pieces and dumped them in a suitcase and ran away.
Police said Manikandan had met Deepa, a sex worker, through a pimp and she went to Thoraipakkam on Wednesday.
As Deepa didn't come back home, her brother tried to reach her on her mobile phone, which was switched off.
After tracking her sister’s mobile phone using the ‘find my device’ option he found that she was last spotted near Thoraipakkam.
Based on the inputs, Deepa’s brother informed the Thoraipakkam police station on Wednesday night.
The police are trying to locate the pimp who introduced Deepa to the murderer.
The chopped body has been sent for post-mortem.
The police have also recovered the CCTV footage of the area and are further investigating the matter.
Last month, a 28-year-old woman was strangled to death by a man inside a hotel room in the Triplicane area of Chennai.
In 2023, a 20-year-old nursing student was allegedly murdered by her boyfriend at a hotel in Chennai.
After killing her, the boyfriend posted a photo of the dead body as his WhatsApp status.
The murder came to light after the victim's friends noticed the WhatsApp status of the accused and informed the police.
