The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : ‘MBA student was strangled to death’

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Tuesday, Jan 08, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

‘MBA student was strangled to death’

Staff Reporter

She had no enemies at college: close friends

HYDERABAD: A day after an MBA student Rupa Devi was found murdered in her house at Kukatpally, investigators on Monday began short listing persons frequently visiting her house.

Points like absence of forcible entry signs suggesting that killers were familiar to the victim prompted them to probe from this angle. Four chance fingerprints were collected from the portion. These could be those of the killers or inmates of the house, the police said. An earthen pot in the kitchen was found broken. Knife injuries on her throat initially led the police to believe she died after her throat was slit. But autopsy confirmed that she was strangled to death. “The cut injury on throat was not so deep to result in death,” the police said. Academic record indicated that Ms. Devi was good at her studies and had some selected friends from the college. Along with seven of her college friends, she went to Basara tour a week ago. “All of them who went along with her to Basara are being questioned. But no dependable clue has emerged so far,” the police said. Her close friends told the investigators that she had no enemies at college who would go to the extent of killing her. The police ruled out the possibility of Ms. Devi being murdered for some gain since no property was lost. The victim along with her parents, grandmother and brother used to live on the second floor of a rented house at Shubhodaya colony.

She was alone in the house after her mother and grandmother went to nearby temple after 6.30 p.m.

While her father was at his vegetable shop, her brother too was away. Neighbours and families living on other portions of the house told the police that they did not hear any shouts or cries from 6.30 p.m. to 7.45 p.m. during which the murder is believed to have been committed. This and absence of struggle marks at the scene of offence indicate the killers were known to the victim. However, the police are clueless about the motive and persons behind the sensational murder.

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Andhra Pradesh