'Human sacrifice' in Kerala: Two women killed in 'rituals' to gain wealth

Two women were killed in Kerala's Pathanamthitta district as part of black magic rituals to bring prosperity, reports said Tuesday.

The two women, who sold lottery tickets on the streets, had gone missing in June and September this year and the probe led to evidence of human sacrifice.

The two were allegedly sacrificed by three people as part of "rituals" to tide over financial difficulties and attain prosperity, PTI quoted police as saying.


Bhagaval Singh, who is a massage therapist, his wife Laila, and Rasheed alias Muhammad Shafi were arrested in connection with the crime.

"Prima facie, it was a case of murder for financial gains through black magic and human sacrifice," IG (south zone) P Prakash said.

Local media reports gave gory details on how the two women, both under fifty, were mutilated and killed as part of the rituals.

The reports said it was Shafi, posing s a black magic practitioner, who convinced the couple they would need to carry out a human sacrifice to get over their financial problems.

They then zeroed in on the first woman Rosalyn at a nearby town, offered her money to act in a film and lured her to Bhagaval Singh's home.

There, according to police sources, she was mutilated, and her throat slit as a "human sacrifice" ritual.

When their financial troubles still continued, the couple approached Shafi again who told them yet another "sacrifice" needed to be held.

Reports said they then followed the same modus operandi with yet another woman, Padmam. But this time, police traced her calls to Shafi.

Reports said he told the police that the trio killed the two women as part of "human sacrifice", cut the bodies into several pieces, and buried them.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan expressed shock over the crime, saying blackmagic and witchcraft rituals should be seen as a challenge to civilised society.