A man who allegedly started his killing spree in 1985 and was arrested for six murders till 2021 has now been nabbed by the Vikarabad police for allegedly strangling another woman to death. The man, now aged 65, reportedly used to pick up women at labour addas in the guise of giving them work and allegedly kill them before fleeing with their cash and jewellery, said the police.
Inspector of Tandur police, Rajender Reddy, said the latest murder came to light following a missing case of a woman. Mala Kishtappa, who was previously diagnosed with having HIV, was released on bail about two months ago. He was seen in a CCTV footage from the labour adda while talking to the woman, Sarvabi, 42, a day before she was reported missing, said the official.
Sarvabi’s husband told the Tandur police that she had called him to inform that a man had hired her for a job in Thattepally village, located about 21 km away, before she stopped answering calls. “He took her there in a Zaheerabad-bound bus and further into an isolated area before strangling her with her saree and escaping with her anklets and ₹1,000 from her purse,” added the official.
Officials from the Vikarabad police said that his first murder case was reported in 1985, following which two more in 2008, one in 2010, and another one in 2015. He was last arrested in 2021 for murdering a woman and setting the corpse on fire in Vikarabad. “He was also institutionalised at a mental health centre in 2007 for two months. He always pleads not guilty during the investigation. However, we have the CCTV footage and mobile towers locations of him and the woman among other things as evidence against him in this case,” said the officials.
