Man jumps custody after poisoning kids, held

Thrissur: Police have arrested the man who escaped from custody after allegedly giving rat poison to his two children in the early hours of Tuesday. The children, who remain in critical condition, were shifted to Aster Medcity Hospital in Kochi on Monday night for advanced treatment.The accused, identified as Muthu, a guest worker from Tamil Nadu, was arrested from an isolated house near Anakkallu in Perumbilavu, Kunnamkulam. He was residing at Anakkallu in Perumbilavu for the past couple of years.Muthu also consumed rat poison and escaped from police custody while undergoing treatment at Thrissur Govt Medical College Hospital. Following his arrest, he was readmitted to the same hospital under police custody on Tuesday.According to police, Muthu allegedly mixed rat poison with fruit juice and gave it to his two children. The children were in critical condition when they were admitted to the medical college hospital.Doctors at the hospital had indicated that the children might require plasma exchange and possibly a liver transplant. However, facilities to perform plasma exchange on such young children were unavailable at the govt medical college hospitals in both Thrissur and Kozhikode.

Transferring the children to a private hospital with advanced facilities was the only viable option but the high cost of treatment posed a major challenge. The medical college authorities informed district collector Sikha Surendran of the situation, who then alerted health minister K Muraleedharan.Following the minister’s intervention, Aster Medcity hospital agreed to admit the children for treatment. The district collector said the hospital had agreed to provide treatment to both children free of cost.According to doctors at Aster Medcity, both children have been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) and are on ventilator support.