Five of a family found dead

KOLLAM: The bodies of five members of a family were found in a decomposed state in their house at Cutcherymukku near Kundara on Saturday. It is suspected to be a case of suicide by consuming poison.The deceased were identified as Jose, 46, his wife Reena, 34,  Beatrice, 80, daughter Reeja, 18 and son Sagar ,15.Police found a suicide note from the house, which states that the family was under constant threat from their neighbours over some disputes between them. Details of a neighbour, including the telephone number, are also given in the note.The bodies were discovered when Angel, sister of Jose, came to the house around 9.30 am on Saturday. Angel, who resides at Perumbuzha, had visited the family on Wednesday and said that she had tried to contact them over phone during the past two days but in vain. She had come to attend a function at a relative’s house nearby on Saturday.When she dropped in, she found the gates closed. Angel then informed her husband and relatives, who broke open the gates to discover that the doors were not locked. The bodies of Reena and Beatrice were found lying at the drawing room, while the other three were found in another room. Jose was an autorickshaw driver and had not been going for work for the past few months. According to relatives, the only source of income for the family was the widow pension of Beatrice, suggesting that the family was facing financial crisis. Reeja is a first year B Sc Maths student at the Fatima Mata National College and Sagar is a Class X student at the St Antony’s HSS, Kanjiracode.