Siddipet cop, wife held for murdering realtor

Hyderabad: A constable and his wife have been arrested for allegedly murdering a realtor and dumping his body in Mallanna Sagar canal, Siddipet police said on Thursday.The accused were G Praveen Kumar, 42, a constable at the Central Crime Station in Siddipet police commissionerate, and his wife, G Rajitha, 35. The deceased was B Vishwanath, 57, a realtor from Siddipet.On May 2 night, Vishwanath's wife, Vanitha, approached Chinnakodur police of Siddipet, stating that her husband had gone missing and a case was registered.The next day, the body of Vishwanath was found in Mallanna Sagar Canal at Ranaganaya Sagar reservoir. Vanitha was called to the spot and she identified the body as that of her husband. During the subsequent probe, police verified CCTV footage at different places and identified Praveen and his wife as the accused.The accused were picked up and during the interrogation, they confessed to having committed the murder. Police said Praveen developed an addiction to online betting and suffered a loss of over 30 lakh. Due to financial distress, Praveen borrowed 12 lakh from Vishwanath by mortgaging land documents.As Vishwanath was forcing Praveen to repay the amount, he and his wife hatched a plan to kill Vishwanath and steal his gold jewellery, the Siddipet police said in an official statement.As per the plan, the couple lured Vishwanath to Ellamma temple in Siddipet on May 2 to discuss the repayment of the borrowed amount and then took him to a deserted place at Pedda Kodur. They tied his hands and strangled him with a wire. The couple stole his gold chain and five rings. The body was dumped in the canal nearby, police said. The stolen gold was sold at a jewellery shop in Siddiamber Bazar in Hyderabad for Rs 12 lakh. Police also connected the couple to another theft case registered at Siddipet I Town police station. The couple was produced before court and remanded.