Preethi Reddy, the Indian-origin dentist who was found murdered in Sydney, Australia on 5 March, originally hailed from Telangana, India. Her body was found stuffed in a suitcase in the boot of her car in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
The 32-year-old’s family was from Mahbubnagar in the state and her father, Narasimha Reddy, a professor, had moved to Australia several years ago, reported The Times of India. He teaches at the Western Sydney University. Preethi was brought up in Sydney.
The dentist worked at a Glenbrook Dental Surgery in the Blue Mountains and lived in Penrith, from where she had driven to St Leonards, a suburb of Sydney, for a dentist’s convention. Her family last spoke to her on Sunday, 3 March, shortly after which she went missing, reported CNN.
The last images the police have of her are from a McDonald’s on George Street in the CBD about 2.15 am on Sunday.
During the period that she was missing, her sister Nithya Reddy started a Facebook page called ‘Help find Preethi Reddy’, which was being used to spread the message and ask for updates. After the news of Preethi’s death, a post was uploaded to the page, stating: “Our dearest Preethi is no longer with us”. The post also asked for privacy.
The Sydney Morning Herald said that Nithya had released a short statement on Wednesday, saying the dentist was "living her best life" before "this unthinkable event".
"Words cannot capture the pain we are feeling with the passing of my beautiful big sister...Preethi was a bright light; loveable, kind, and protective of all whom were lucky enough to have been loved and cared for by her,” the statement read.
Nithya further said, "Our family will never be the same without Preethi in our lives. Please let her beautiful soul Rest In Peace."
She added that her family, particularly her parents and Preethi’s partner, were "going through the hardest thing that anyone can endure", and asked that their privacy be respected.
Family friend Navnit Anand said Reddy was "a lovely human being" and her family was "shattered". "It takes a lot of effort to be a dentist and she achieved it...the family's so proud that they had a daughter like that," Anand told reporters, said New Zealand website Stuff.co.nz.
Preethi’s current partner also paid tribute to her on Facebook, posting a photo of the couple with a caption, on Facebook, said Australian news website news.com.au.
“I’ll see you again one day … and we’ll continue where we left off my angel,” he wrote.
According to CNN, Glenbrook Dental Surgery, where Preethi had worked said staff were "in mourning" after news of her death. The surgery’s Facebook page also had a post about the murdered dentist.
Ex-Boyfriend Main Suspect
As per police reports, the main suspect in Preethi’s murder is her ex-boyfriend Harshwardhan Narde, with who Preethi had had a long-term, long-distance, on and off relationship. According to a report, she had ended the relationship last year after Narde moved out of Sydney.
34-year-old Narde was also a dentist and worked at Tamworth’s Oasis Smiles Dental Clinic, according to a report.
In a shocking twist, Narde died on Monday night in a fiery crash after his BMW rammed into a semi-trailer on the New England highway near Tamworth. The crash now appears to be deliberate.
Narde is the main suspect now, but the police are still trying to piece together the events that led up to Preethi’s murder, reported PTI.
However, police think that Narde, who had not accepted the break-up, travelled 400 kilometres from Tamworth to St Leonards for the conference with the sole purpose of seeing his ex-girlfriend, despite knowing that she was in a relationship with someone else.
(With inputs from PTI, news.com.au, Stuff.co.nz, CNN, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Times of India and ABC News.)
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