The Chittoor police on Sunday searched the houses of some of the close associates of main accused Chandrasekhar alias Chintu in various localities of Chittoor town in connection with the double murder of Mayor Katari Anuradha and her husband Katari Mohan on Tuesday by a gang of masked assailants.
The investigation officers have come to a conclusion that though the actual number of persons who took part in the physical attack on Mayor couple were five, the number of persons involved in the conspiracy could be even more.
A senior official of the special branch told The Hindu that the investigating team has a list of over 35 persons, close to Chintu, for examination. But, half of them were not available at their houses when the police teams tried to reach them to examine. "Though all are not accused, some of them may be afraid of police investigation, hence absconding," the official said. In a couple of days, the number of persons wanted for examination would cross 50.
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On Sunday a special team thoroughly searched the house of one Parandhama, close associate of Chintu, at Ganganapalle locality.
Another senior official probing the double murder case maintained that the possibility of Chintu leaving the country is at present remote, as his passport was seized during a raid on his office. "Legally, he (Chintu) can't leave the country, but we can't rule out his adopting illegal modes," the officer said.