Bank guard’s gun goes off by accident, woman diesKannurKannur

A young woman was killed on Thursday at Thalassery in Kannur district after a security guard of her bank accidentally fired at her.

The police said the preliminary investigation showed the gun went off while cleaning. Vilna Vinod, 27, had joined IDBI Bank’s Thalassery branch just three weeks ago, said her relatives.

The guard, Hareendran, 51, of Ancharakandy, an ex-serviceman, was arrested, along with his gun.

The gunfire created chaos inside the bank, as blood sprayed onto the faces of the nearby staff and Vinod’s skull was blown up by its impact.

The incident took place in the Rani Plaza building on Logan’s Road downtown Thalassery around 9.45 am. The woman and two others were sitting in the sales section of the counter.

Mr Hareendran cleaned the gun in front of the staff just two and a half metres away from them and in seconds, it went off. The body was first taken to Indira Gandhi Cooperative Hospital and then to Pariyaram Medical College.

The victim is the daughter of Vinod and Sudha, Valiyandi Veettil, Meloor, Dharmadam. She was married to Sangeeth, Punnol, three years ago. Nayana is her only sister.

Mr Hareendran was on a contract with a security firm and had been working with the same branch for the last three years, said Thalassery Town CI P.M. Manoj.

“It is mandatory not to clean the gun in the presence of people. This is purely a breach of security,” said the investigating officer.

Principal SI C. Shaju and additional SI Rajeevan visited the spot and questioned the bank staff. Fingerprint and forensic experts collected samples.

The burial will be held on Friday at 10.30 am on the premises of Vinod’s house. Ms Sudha was admitted to hospital after hearing the tragic news.