HYDERABAD: Forty-six-year-old Vannela Murali, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing his live-in partner, an SC woman in Vikarabad district in 2021, kept the cops on their toes for over two months after the offence.
A few days after the offence, police tracked him to a Covid isolation centre in Nizamabad district. However, on sensing that the police were swooping in on him, Murali escaped from there. After killing his partner Padmamma, he stayed with her body the whole night, not knowing that she was dead. However, he fled the moment Padmamma was declared dead at hospital.
The only information police found after Padmamma’s death was that she was staying with one person, but nobody had a clue as to who he was. However, while searching the house, police found a photograph of Murali and Padmamma and later, they found a mobile number, which they suspected belonged to Murali.
With these two clues, police started tracking him and found that he was in Nizamabad district. When they arrived there and started showing locals his photograph, they realised Murali was lodged in the Covid isolation centre.
Caught in Patancheru
As police set up vigil at the isolation centre, he fled, leaving police clueless again. However, with continued efforts, police finally tracked him in Patancheru on the outskirts of Hyderabad and found that Murali had already started working in a small company where he kept a low profile.
On interrogation, he confessed to having killed Padmamma and also showed police the electric cable which he used. He also stole `20,000 cash belonging to Padmamma. The same was recorded in the presence of government panchas, who testified against him in the court. Relying on all the evidence provided, the court on Thursday sentenced him to life imprisonment.
Trail left by murderer
The only information police found following Padmamma’s death was that she was staying with one person, but nobody had a clue as to who he was. Later, while searching the house, police found a photo of Murali with the victim and then a mobile number.