(Trigger Warning: Descriptions of violence)
The Hyderabad Police on Wednesday, 24 May, arrested a man named B Chandra Mohan, 48, for allegedly killing a woman, chopping her body into pieces, and storing them in a refrigerator and a suitcase at his house.
The woman, identified as 55-year-old Yerram Anuradha Reddy, was in a relationship with the accused and was a tenant in his building in Chaitanyapuri Colony in Hyderabad's Dilsukhnagar area.
The Malakpet Police, investigating the case, said that the accused had disposed of the woman's severed head at a garbage dump on 17 May, and an investigation into the same led them to Chandra Mohan, who is involved in stock market work.
The house of the victim in Chaitanyapuri Colony, Hyderabad.
(Photo: Accessed by The Quint)
What Happened?
The police said that on 17 May, a municipal worker found a severed head of a woman at a garbage dump near Musi river. It was covered in a black plastic bag.
Eight teams were formed to investigate the case, and they checked CCTV footage, looked for missing persons matching the woman's facial description, sent out flyers with the woman's face to identify her.
Speaking to the media, CH Rupesh, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Southeast Zone, Hyderabad, said:
"A case was registered at the Malakpet police station. We checked CCTV footage for a week. A few people emerged as suspects, and we ruled all of them out except one. We received a lead and we approached the suspect, Chandra Mohan. After questioning, he confessed to killing the woman and chopping her body into six parts."
The DCP said that the accused used two stone-cutting machines to chop her body into about six pieces, and stored the hands and legs in the fridge. Her torso was placed in a suitcase, while he dumped her severed head at the garbage dump.
Cleaning equipment used by the accused after the murder.
(Photo: Accessed by The Quint)
What Was the Motive?
Chandra Mohan and Anuradha Reddy had allegedly been in a relationship for the past 15 years. She had separated from her husband, and was living on the ground floor of Chandra Mohan's house.
Anuradha Reddy used to lend money to people, and the accused had taken Rs 7 lakh from her five years ago, but never returned it to her. Annoyed by her requests to return the money, the accused decided to kill her, according to the police.
On 12 May, he fought with her over the said amount and attacked her with a knife. She died of stab injuries to the chest and stomach.
After chopping her body, he used cleaning equipment and perfume to remove the smell. He also got hold of her phone and texted people she knew, to make them believe she was alive, the police said.
The police added that he has been charged with Sections 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Indian Penal Code.
The murder appears eerily similar to those of Shraddha Walkar and Nikki Yadav in Delhi, where both their bodies were chopped up and stored by their live-in partners.
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