HYDERABAD: A 34-year-old hostel operator was arrested in Gachibowli over his alleged involvement in the murder of his brother-in-law and trying to pass it off as suicide. Two others were also nabbed for carrying out the offence, police said.
The main accused, Gogula Srikanth, was reportedly addicted to online betting. However, as he was facing major losses, he intended to kill his brother-in-law Yashwanth, 25, so he could get access to his assets to fund his betting, the cops said.
Acting on his plan, Srikanth hired two persons — Puliashramane Anand, 35, and Ambati Venkatesh, 23, — for Rs 10 lakh and directed them to murder Yashwanth.
According to the police, Yashwanth was staying in the hostel operated by Srikanth. In the early hours of September 2, the hired assassins sneaked into Yashwanth’s room when the victim was sleeping and allegedly strangled him to death.
“After killing him, they wrapped a chunni around his neck and tied it to the ceiling fan to make it appear as if he had died by suicide,” said Madhapur ACP Ch Srikanth.
However, Yashwanth’s father grew suspicious of the suicide and filed a complaint with the police. Based on CCTV footage and inquiries with hostel inhabitants, the Gachibowli police narrowed down to Srikanth. Upon interrogation, he confessed to his involvement in the murder and also revealed that he had hired two assassins to execute his plan, the cops added.