Coimbatore murder: Husband killed wife after receiving her intimate photo, learning of affair

Coimbatore murder

A 32-year-old man allegedly murdered his estranged wife inside a working women’s hostel in the Gandhipuram area of Coimbatore on Sunday morning, police said. The incident took place on Raja Naidu Street.

The accused, S Balamurugan from Tirunelveli, had been separated from his wife, Sri Priya (30), for the past four months following repeated marital disputes.

After leaving their home, Priya moved to Coimbatore and began working at a bag shop on Cross Cut Road. Their two children, a 10-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl, remained in Balamurugan’s care.

During her stay at the hostel, Priya allegedly developed a relationship with a distant relative of her husband, Isakki Raja, who is already married and has three children.

On Saturday, Balamurugan travelled to Coimbatore and met Priya, asking her to end the relationship and return home. She allegedly refused. Upon learning of the meeting, Isakki allegedly sent Balamurugan an intimate photograph of himself with Priya. Police said this triggered the violent outburst.

Early Sunday morning, Balamurugan went to the hostel in an allegedly intoxicated state and confronted Priya. During the argument, he pulled out a sickle he was carrying and attacked her.

When police arrived at the scene, they found Priya’s body inside the hostel premises, while Balamurugan was still present nearby. The body was later sent to Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital for postmortem examination.

Investigators also revealed that the accused had taken a photograph with the victim and posted it as his WhatsApp status with the message, “payment for betrayal is death.”

He was arrested soon after the incident, produced before a court, and remanded to judicial custody.