Serial killer yet to be chargesheeted

Hyderabad: More than six months after the alleged serial killer Yerukali Srinu was arrested by Mahabubnagar police for killing four women last year, investigators are yet to get forensic reports in the case in order to file a charge sheet against the accused. Srinu has allegedly murdered 17 people since 2007. While he was earlier convicted in two murder cases, he was acquitted by local courts in the remaining 11.
In the last four murder cases, his modus operandi was to frequent toddy compounds and target women consuming toddy.He used to take them out on various pretexts, kill them and loot the gold and silver ornaments from them, police said.
“Due to the Covid-19 situation, the investigation into the murders has taken a backseat. The charge sheet is almost ready and once we get the DNA and other forensic reports, Srinu will be chargesheeted in court,” police said.
In December 2019, Mahabubnagar police had arrested Srinu for murdering 55-year-old Aliveamma and stealing her ornaments in Devarakadra. During interrogation, Srinu confessed to having committed three more murders since his release from jail in 2018. “He was convicted in 2015 for one of the murders and released from jail in 2018 for good conduct, but had taken to crime again to get his daily quota of liquor,” police said. In the last six months, Srinu was released on bail after he was arrested for murdering Aliveamma as police failed to file the charge sheet in the stipulated three-months’ time. However, the district police arrested him in another pending murder case.
Officials said that they have enough proof to nail the accused in the murder of four women in Devarakadra, Kothakota, Midji and Boothpur.