Visakhapatnam: Potina Sai Vijay, a photographer from Bakkannapalem village within Maduravada police station limits, who had gone missing on February 26 while on his way to a wedding shoot in Ravulapalem of East Godavari district, has been found dead. Police have arrested a suspect in the case.
Sai Vijay's parents Srinu, an auto driver, and Ramanamma, who runs a store, filed a complaint with police on February 29 after their son's phone had gone unanswered.
Investigations revealed that the photographer had come in contact with a person named Shanmukh through social media. Shanmukh, on coming to know about Sai Vijay's high-end cameras worth around ₹15 lakh, convinced the photographer to come to Ravulapalem for a wedding event.
Following this, on February 26, Sai Vijay boarded a bus from Car Shed Junction with his cameras and reached Visakhapatnam railway station. He took a train to Rajahmundry, where he met Shanmukh. They hired a car and drove to Alamuru near Ravulapalem.
Suspecting foul play, Sai Vijay sent a photo of the car he was travelling in to his mother, along with Shanmukh's phone number, expressing his apprehension about being with unknown people.
Subsequently, Sai Vijay’s phone had been switched off. Shanmukh's number also turned out to be unreachable.
The photographer’s parents then filed a complaint with PM Palem police, who registered a case and started investigation. They collected evidence and traced Shanmukh as being in Ravulapalem. But when police reached there, he had absconded.
PM Palem inspector told Deccan Chronicle that they lured Shanmukh on Facebook by posing as a girl from Kancharapalem with whom Shanmukh had been in contact. They then arrested him.
Shanmukh’s interrogation revealed that he had killed photographer Sai Vijay in a room that he had hired. He had hidden both the body and the cameras in the room when police lured him out.
Police have arrested Shanmukh and are investigating the case further.
