The Hindu : Advocates' murder mystery solved

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 08, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Advocates' murder mystery solved

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, FEB. 7. The Cyberabad police have, within in 24 hours, solved the case pertaining to the murder of two women advocates -- Swarna Kumari and Satyavathi -- with the arrest of three persons -- Alipur Prashanth Kumar, Kunti Raghavender Reddy and Manda Raju.

The motive behind the murders was that one of the arrested person was peeved at Swarna Kumari for not getting him bail in a criminal case and refusing to return the fee. Satyavathi was murdered as she was an eyewitness to the killing of Swarna Kumari.

The Police Commissioner, Mahender Reddy, told newsmen here on Saturday that Prashanth of Moosarambagh was jailed in connection with a murder case. In the prison he came in contact with Sameer Javeri, son of Sadruddin Jaaveri, gemmologist of Nizam diamonds. After the latter was released from jail in April last, he reportedly paid Rs. 30,000 to Swarna Kumari for getting Prashanth out on bail. However, after a month, Sameer Javeri, entrusted the job to another advocate, Mohammed Jani.

When Prashanth was released, Sameer, while leaving for Mumbai, asked the former to collect the fee from Swarna Kumari. She had refused to return the amount and even threatened to get a pending warrant against Prashanth executed indicating that he could be arrested again.

On February 4, after hatching a plot, Prashanth, with his two accomplices, allegedly went to the court and asked Swarna Kumari to represent him in a land dispute case in Ibrahimpatnam court the next day. Accordingly, the trio picked up Swarna Kumari and Satyavathi on Thursday and proceeded to Ibrahimpatnam using a circuitous route.

As they could not reach Ibrahimpatnam in time, Prashanth reportedly told her that they could go to court again on Friday. On their return, Prashanth and his friends drove the car to an isolated place in Hasthinapuram and carried out their plan. The trio allegedly slit the throat of Swarna Kumari. Raghu and Raju were said to have pulled her body out of the car and abandoned it after taking away her ornaments. The three later drove a few km further and near Matrusri Engineering College in Nadirgul, they allegedly strangled Satyavathi to death with a rope. They threw her body after collecting her ornaments.

"We have enough scientific evidence and eye-witnesses for a clear case," Mr. Mahender Reddy said.

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Andhra Pradesh