Honour Killings: East London Man Murdered His Family and Then Hanged Himself Because They Had Been ‘Corrupted by the West’

Pullarkattil Rethishkumar, 44, hanged himself at the Woodford resevoir, London, on Wednesday, after murdering his wife and 13-year-old twin daughters, because they didn’t want to return to India with him.

Social worker Shighi Rethishkumar, 37, and 13-year-old twins Niya and Neha were discovered dead in their beds on Tuesday, with Pullarkattil being discovered later on Wednesday after they had a “huge row” over the future of the family. Mr. Rethishkumar had demanded the family return with him to India, but found them, in his opinion, to have had their “morals” damaged by living in the UK.

The fact their bodies showed no sign of struggle suggests poison or suffocation may have been the cause of death.

Fearing Western life has “corrupted” his family and made them “greedy”, it is believed Mr. Rethishkumar thought it better they died than sink further into British morality, or allow his wife to divorce him. The Evening Standard reports the comments of one anonymous family friend, who said of Mrs. Rethishkumar: “She called her parents on Sunday saying she had said she wanted a divorce. She then sent a message to a friend saying she was fed up of this life. They were having a lot of problems, with the children and between them.

“He was very stressed about his family and the house, and she was unhappy. He was not able to understand things over here and for a number of years they had issues between them.

“He was an educated man and qualified in India and thought it best to move back there, but she did not want to go and told him she and the children were staying. He felt his family was lost”.

A police spokesman has said no other suspects are being sought in connection to the killings.