Man Killed by Brother-in-Law Over Property Dispute

Hyderabad:The alleged suicide of a 25-year-old man from AP turned out to be a murder for property, with the prime suspect being his brother-in-law. The Gachibowli police on Saturday arrested one Sreekanth for allegedly offering a supari of `10 lakh to two others for killing the victim, Yashwant. The two other accused were identified as Anand and Venkatesh.

Police said that Yashwant was the brother of Sreekanth’s wife Amulya. Sreekanth was running a men's hostel in partnership at Gachibowli where Yashwanth came to stay while looking for a job. Police said Sreekanth had become addicted to online betting, particularly on cockfighting. His daily bets reportedly ranged between ₹2 lakh and ₹3 lakh, resulting in massive financial losses that totalled `4 crore.

Sreekanth had borrowed the entire amount, and as his creditors began pressuring him for repayment, police said. Sreekanth reportedly concluded that if his brother-in-law Yashwanth were to die, the property owned by his father-in-law would be transferred to his wife Amulya. This would enable Sreekanth to gain control of the family assets and clear his debts.

Police said Yashwanth and approached his acquaintance Anand and offered him a supari of `10 lakh to carry out the murder. Anand hired Venkatesh to execute the plan. The trio conspired to stage the death as a suicide.

Police said that between 12.45 am and 1.30 am on September 2, Sreekanth disconnected the CCTV power supply. Anand and Venkatesh entered the room and strangled Yashwanth to death. They then made it appear that Sreekanth had died by suicide. Sreekanth handed over the body to Yashwanth's parents, claiming that financial issues might have led him to take his life.

Yashwant’s father lodged a complaint following which the police began investigations and cracked the case.