The City Police have registered a case against three constables attached to the city rural police station on charges of graft and dereliction of duties in a case of murder involving a member of the Budaga Jangalu community reported in April last, from Pinakadimi of West Godavari district.
Jangareddygudem DSP A.V. Subbaraju, who is the Investigation Officer, lodged a complaint with the rural police with the prima facie evidence which allegedly pointed to huge money changing hands in the department for a section of personnel allowing the murder and escaping of the prime accused from custody.
The police arrested 12 persons, including the prime accused Turapati Nagaraju, for their alleged role in the murder of Bhutam Durga Rao of Budaga Jangalu community. They were all allegedly lodged in the rural police station for 19 days after the arrest, without being produced before the court. In the meantime, Turapati Nagaraju escaped allegedly in connivance with the senior police officers, the DSP stated in his complaint.
Nagaraju’s escape from police custody was believed to have helped him to carry out the triple murders involving his rival group from the same community by a hired gang of assassins on the NH5 near Gannavaram later.
SP K. Raghuram Reddy told The Hindu that one of the accused, Sudarsan, had confessed that he had withdrawn over Rs. 3 lakh from a nationalised bank and gave the amount to a constable, Jeevaratnam, prior to the murder, according to the complaint .
Three constables have been booked on charges of graft and dereliction of duties
‘Evidence points at some cops allowing the murder and helping the prime accused escape’
