Later, he confessed to the public media that he purchased a cobra, and introduced the snake into their bedroom, with the intention of killing his wife.
[6] In Kollam sessions court, on 13 October 2021, Sooraj S. Kumar was found guilty of killing his wife by forcing a live cobra to bite her.
In the first snakebite incident, he said that a Russell's viper would have been unable to reach the second storey room in her husband's home, where Uthra received the first snake bite.
In regards to the second, fatal bite, Vava Suresh also noted that it would have been difficult for the cobra to enter the air-conditioned room in Uthra's parents' home unaided.
[17] According to the police, Sooraj admitted that he gave "sleep-inducing pills"[18] to his wife in order to sedate her before releasing the snake.
[11] The Kerala police's special investigation team (SIT) stated that Sooraj would be the primary person accused and that another case would be registered against him, his mother, father and sister for domestic violence and destroying evidence.
[21] Crime Branch Deputy Superintendent of Police, A Ashokan, the officer who had led the investigation stated that prior to her death, "she wasn’t able to walk, was in a bed-ridden situation for 52 days and had to undergo a plastic surgery after getting bitten by the viper.
[22] In early June 2020, Uthra's father-in-law, Surendran Panicker (59) was arrested, on charges of destroying evidence and hiding 38 sovereign of gold jewellery, which police discovered buried in a nearby rubber plantation.
[21] In August 2020, both Renuka and Surya, mother and sister of Sooraj, were arrested on charges of conspiracy, domestic violence and destruction of evidence.
[9] The then Kerala DGP Loknath Behra said that in this peculiar case, the investigation would be carried out in a scientific manner by conducting a DNA test on the dead snake.
[14] Police received information that Sooraj had obtained a life insurance policy on his wife a few months prior to her death.
[3] Uthra's father said that "he had gifted over 100 sovereigns of gold and a new car" to Sooraj and his family,[9] in addition to ₹10 lakhs in cash.
[21] The case became a major reference point in the criminology syllabus, since Sooraj employed a natural weapon to commit the murder.