VIJAYAWADA: Police arrested a woman in Nekarikallu, Palnadu district, on charges of murdering her two brothers over a financial dispute.
The 28-year-old accused, Krishnaveni, was assisted in the crime by her cousin, Lakshmi Narasimha, who was also taken into custody. One of the victims, Gopi Krishna, was a police constable at Bandlamotu police station in the same district.
Palnadu SP Kanchi Srinivas stated that Krishnaveni killed her elder brother Gopi Krishna (32) and younger brother Durga Ramakrishna (26) between Nov 26 and Dec 10. With Narasimha’s help, she disposed of their bodies by dumping them in a nearby canal.
The crime stemmed from a dispute over the distribution of benefits following the death of their father, who passed away in Jan this year, the police said. Their father, a teacher at Nekarikallu Tribal Welfare School, had died while still in service, leaving financial benefits, including monetary compensation and eligibility for a compassionate appointment.
Their mother had passed away several years earlier. The family lived in Yanadi Colony, Nekarikallu. Krishnaveni, married to Sai Krishna since 2013, has a son and a daughter. She had been living separately from her husband due to marital discord, staying with her children in a rented house.
Felt left out Following their father’s death, tensions arose among the siblings regarding the division of financial entitlements. Gopi Krishna, already employed as a constable, wanted the monetary benefits, while Ramakrishna sought the job opportunity.
Krishnaveni, feeling excluded from what she believed was her rightful share, decided to eliminate her brothers. On Nov 26, she lured Ramakrishna to the Gorantla canal near Challagundla, offering to resolve the dispute. After providing him alcohol and waiting until he was heavily intoxicated, she strangled him with her dupatta and, with Narasimha’s assistance, pushed his body into the canal.
On Dec 10, she invited Gopi Krishna to her home and killed him in a similar fashion. Narasimha helped transport his body to the canal on a bike, where it was also dumped. Last Thursday, police were alerted to a decomposed body floating in the canal near Muppalla, but identification was initially impossible.
With Krishnaveni already under suspicion due to her brothers’ disappearances, she was taken into custody and confessed during questioning. Gopi Krishna’s wife later identified his body. On Monday evening, Ramakrishna’s body was also recovered from the canal. Following this, Krishnaveni and her cousin Narasimha were formally arrested.
