Murder-Suicide: Man Kills Self After Poisoning Wife, Two Children Over Fear Of Getting Converted To Islam

In a shocking case of murder-suicide, four members of a family, including two children, were found dead inside their home in Mangaluru of Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, India on Wednesday, Dec. 8.

According to the police, 30-year-old Nagesh Sheriguppi allegedly hanged himself to death after poisoning his 26-year-old wife, Vijayalakshmi, his 8-year-old daughter, Sapna, and his 4-year-old son Samarth.

Sheriguppi allegedly mixed poison in the fried rice he served to his family for dinner. After he made sure they were dead, he reportedly hanged himself to death, police said.

The investigators recovered a suicide note from the scene in which Shriguppi reportedly stated that he is taking the extreme step to prevent his family from getting converted to another religion.

Vijayalakshmi worked as a domestic help at the home of a lady, identified as Noor Jahan, Mangaluru Police Commissioner N. Shashikumar said.

In his death note, Shriguppi said that a woman named Noor Jahan, at whose residence Vijayalakshmi worked as a domestic help was trying to convert his wife and their children to Islam.

According to statements from the neighbors of the family, Shriguppi had allegedly rebuked Vijayalkshmi for working at the woman’s home.

The couple often engaged in altercations over the same issue, local media reported.

In October this year, Shriguppi had filed a missing person’s report after he failed to locate his wife and children.

The case was closed after Vijayalkshmi returned a few days later and told the police that she was living at her friend's house after a fight with her husband.

She returned home after Shriguppi reportedly apologized and promised not to harass her anymore, police said.

Following a preliminary investigation, the police took the accused homeowner into custody for questioning.

The relatives of the family have not filed a complaint, authorities said. The police have registered a suo moto case for abetment of suicide, and are investigating the death, the police commissioner said.

This is an ongoing investigation and no further details were revealed at the time of this writing.