A journalist, P. Suman, who had come out on bail after being arrested a fortnight ago in a criminal case, ‘ended his life’ by hanging himself to a tree branch at Shamirpet here on Tuesday.
Twenty-four-year old Suman was working with 10 TV Telugu news channel when he was arrested on November 26 along with four others, two of them TV journalists, in a case of looting three persons of Rs. 19 lakh. According to the police, the gang took away Rs. 19 lakh, mostly currency notes of Rs. 2,000 denomination, posing as special police team, from some businessmen.
Suman was subsequently stripped of his job by the employer. A resident of Alwal, he left his home around 10 a.m., telling his family members that he was going to bank. He didn’t return but around 3 p.m. passersby saw the body of a person hanging from a tree, with a sari tied around the neck, at a secluded place close to the Shamirpet tank.
“There was no suicide note. After some identified him as Suman, we called his family members and, in their presence, the body was shifted to the Gandhi hospital morgue for autopsy,” the Shamirpet police said. The exact sequence of events from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. was yet to be ascertained.
Suman was unmarried. He had two younger sisters. After the arrest, he came out on bail on December 30. He went to Bollarum police station on Sunday to collect his wallet and some other belongings left in the police station before being arrested in the case.
The Shamirpet police registered a case of unnatural death under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Autopsy of the body would be conducted on Wednesday. Alwal Press Club president S. Ravi said that there were several doubts about the version of the police on the case registered against Suman.