Kandukur cops arrest man for three murders; accused targeted women alone in homes, farmhouses

Hyderabad: A person has been arrested as an accused in three murders, with one case being a double murder.

The sleuths of Kandukur Police, Maheswaram Zone, Rachakonda Commissionerate arrested Uppula Shiva Kumar (25), a resident of Kandukur Mandal, for the murders.

Murder case 1

The case came to light after a complaint was filed by a resident of Saidabad, who had employed the deceased – an elderly couple, Mooga Ushaiah and Mooga Shanthamma – to attend to his mango orchard and perform other agricultural work in Kothaguda. The couple were natives of Nagarkurnool district.

On October 16, the complainant couldn’t reach the couple through calls. His friend Mahender was later sent to check on the couple the next day.

Upon arriving at the farm, Mahender found Ushaiah dead in a pool of blood in the mango orchard with cut injuries. He also found Shanthamma’s body on a cot with several fatal injuries. The police were immediately informed about their deaths and a case was registered.

On the instructions of CP Rachakonda, several teams involving SOT, IT Cell, Clues Team etc., were formed to catch the person involved.

During the investigation, Uppula Shiva Kumar came under the scanner for behaving suspiciously. He was taken into custody on October 18. During the interrogation, he confessed to having murdered the couple and also informed police about another murder he committed at Aruna farmhouse in Dasarlapally village in March 2023.

He also led the police to the scene of the crime in Kothaguda and explained the sequence of committing the crime. He showed them the knife he used which he had hidden in the neighbour’s land.

Murder case 2

Based on Shiva Kumar’s confession, the police were also able to link him to the murder of a woman at a farmhouse in Dasarlapally. Shiva Kumar’s fingerprints matched the ones found at the crime scene.

According to police records, the murder of Chenchu Shailaja Reddy (42) came to light on March 3, 2023. The deceased was staying with her husband and two children in Kandukur Mandal. According to the complaint filed by the son, Pulivendula Chenchu Krishna Reddy, his mother was found dead in the kitchen by the father with severe fatal injuries on her neck, caused by a sharp weapon like an axe. The son was away at the time of the incident and no one was home. So, there were no eyewitnesses to identify the accused.

The police said that the accused was addicted to alcohol and used to roam the village without any purpose. He would target women alone in homes or farmhouses and sexually assault them under the influence of alcohol. When they resisted, he would attack them with a knife or a sickle.