Ongole: Woman, child murdered and burnt
Ongole: In a gruesome incident, a woman in her early 20s and her toddler daughter were murdered and burnt with petrol near here late on Tuesday night. The police suspect that the woman was around 23 to 25 years of age while the girl is of one or one-and-a-half year-old.
According to Ongole DSP K V V N V Prasad and other officials, a farmer noticed flames in the fields between Pernamitta of Santhanuthalapadu mandal and Pedakothapalli of Maddipadu mandal on Tuesday night and informed locals of Pernamitta. They rushed to the spot and found two bodies of a woman in pink sari and a girl child burning and called police immediately. Ongole DSP Prasad, taluk CI Lakshman, rural CI P Subbarao, Maddipadu SI Sk Khadar Basha reached the place and found a stone with bloodstains, a knife, an empty bottle used to carry petrol in the crime scene.
After making enquiries with the locals, the police learned that an unidentified man took the woman in pink sari and baby girl towards Pedakothapalli in the evening. The police suspect that the man killed the woman first and girl next by slitting their throats with the knife and burnt the bodies by pouring the petrol he was already carrying with him. Police suspect either an affair or disputes in the family could be the motive behind the double murder.
Even as the tragedy took place amid uproar over delayed police action in Disha rape-murder case in Hyderabad, it is learnt that police who first rushed to the spot after being alerted by local people reportedly said that the scene of crime does not fall under their limits.
When the Pernamitta villagers informed both Ongole taluk and rural police about the double murder, the taluk CI and Maddipadu SI reached the spot but claimed that the spot was not in their jurisdiction. They came to an agreement to start investigation first, after a discussion for one hour, and just before the DSP reached the spot. Prakasam SP Siddharth Kaushal also visited the spot in the night and provided guidance for the investigation.