India snake-bite assassin killed wife at second attempt

New Delhi: After first failing with a viper, an Indian man has been arrested for allegedly murdering his wife by letting loose a cobra in her room, police said Monday.

Police in the southern state of Kerala said phone records showed the man -- named as Sooraj -- had been in contact with serpent handlers and had also watched snake videos on the internet.

In March, the 27-year-old got hold of a highly venomous Russell's viper which bit his wife Uthra and left her in hospital for almost two months, police official Ashok Kumar told AFP. While still recuperating at her parents' house earlier this month, Sooraj obtained a cobra from a snake handler and threw the animal at his sleeping wife.

"Sooraj stayed in the same room as Uthra as if nothing had happened. He was going about his morning routine the next day when he was alerted by Uthra's mother's screams," a police statement said.