“My son Raghu committed a grievous crime and should be punished for it. I know that it is an irrecoverable loss for Saanvi’s family but I request them to forgive him.”
These words were spoken by Yandamuri Padmavathi about her son Raghunandan Yandamuri, who killed 10-month-old Saanvi Venna and her grandmother Satyavathi in Pennsylvania, US. She uttered these words in front of mediapersons, who waited outside her modest two bedroom flat at Ganga residency in Akkayyapalem in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
Raghunandan alias Raghu has been arrested by the US authorities in connection with the two killings.
Padmavathi, who was inconsolable since the arrest of her son on Saturday, mustered all her courage to speak to the media and said that she could not believe her son could commit such a heinous crime. “But later, I was informed that Raghu himself confessed to the killing. It is not easy for us to cope with the situation. We are in a daze,” she lamented.
Raghu, who completed his MCA in Visakhapatnam, went to the US in 2007 to pursue higher studies and was hired by an IT firm. He reportedly went bankrupt in April this year and the police stated that he committed the crime for financial gain.
Shockingly, his family had no knowledge about his monetary issues. “Neither Raghu nor any of my family members have financial problems. Since my husband passed away 10 years ago, I brought up my two sons without any issues and ensured good education for them. We are in no dire need of money,” Padmavathi claimed.
But she did admit that her son was disturbed over the last couple of weeks. “He spoke to me over telephone after the incident and appeared disturbed. When I inquired, he told me that it was due to work pressure and also the death of the baby,” she said.
Raghu’s relatives and neighbours felt that even if he had any financial problems, he never discussed it with any of the family members. “Raghu married his long-term girlfriend Komali in the first quarter this year and the couple are now expecting a baby. We heard that he was often seeking hand loans from friends. But, it is not yet ascertained,” a neighbour revealed on the condition of anonymity.