Police unravelled the murder mystery of TDP councillor Paka Gopalakrishna (50) who was killed in the town on Friday.
They claimed to have arrested two persons involved in the murder.
Addressing a press conference here on Saturday, Kovvur Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Narra Venkateswara Rao said the accused killed Gopalakrishna over dispute over occupying some sand ramps on the Godavari bund.
They arrested sand trader Thota Sriramulu and his associate Chadalawada Madhu Babu, both natives of Kovvur. The police recovered a motorbike used for committing the offence and a dagger from their possession, the DSP said.
The victim had a piece of land on the river bund for storing sand extracted from the Godavari. However, Sriramulu had a quarrel with the TDP leader over the issue alleging that it was occupied a few days ago.
Suspecting that Gopalakrishna was causing loss to his sand business, the accused developed a grudge against him and conspired for the murder.
Accordingly, he took the help of Madhu Babu and conducted a ‘recce’ before the operation. Madhu Babu followed the victim’s bike and Sriramulu, who was the pillion-rider, attacked Gopalakrishna with the dagger killing him on the spot.
CCTV footage
“Based on the CCTV footages arranged at the rail-cum-road bridge, the police identified the accused and the vehicle used for the offence. The murder plot was exposed a few hours after the murder,” said Superintendent of Police Bhaskar Bhushan.
“An autorickshaw driver, who was passing through the main road, saw the murder and alerted the locals and the family members. We are trying to find out whether any other accused were involved in the crime,” said Mr. Venkateswara Rao. The Kovur Circle-Inspector Prasad Rao and others were present.
The victim had a land on the river bund for storing sand extracted from the Godavari
