Kozhikode (Kerala) | A man who fled the country after being involved in a hit-and-run case that killed an elderly woman and left a nine-year-old girl in a state of coma a year ago has been taken into custody, police said here on Monday.

Police said Shejil, who hails from Purameri in this district, was apprehended at Coimbatore Airport upon his arrival from a Gulf nation, as a lookout notice had been issued against him.

They said a police team from Vatakara travelled to Coimbatore to bring Shejil back to Kerala.

The accident occurred on February 17 last year on the national highway at Vadakara Chorode.

A 68-year-old woman died, while her nine-year-old granddaughter suffered severe injuries and remains in a state of coma at Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

After a 10-month investigation, police identified and seized the car involved in the hit-and-run.

Despite many CCTV cameras, they could not trace the vehicle at first.

A breakthrough came when they found the driver had filed an insurance claim, saying his car hit a wall.

He fled to the UAE in March, but police later arrested him and charged him with culpable homicide.