Killer daughter

Hyderabad, Sept. 21: Residents of Visakhapatnam’s Narsipatnam mandal are in shock at the brutal murder of a middle-aged couple by their adopted daughter, her fiance and their accomplices.

Vijetha, 18, a resident of Jogipalem in Visakhapatnam district, stands accused of killing her adoptive parents and burying their body parts under the floor of their four-room house, which she plastered over with cement. The part-time actress continued to live in the same house for the next 37 days until a relative smelt a rat and called the police.

Vishalakshi, 45, and Vijayaratham, 50, had adopted Vijetha from an orphanage and educated her up to senior school. Since the teenager was fair and goodlooking, they urged her to try her luck in the Telugu film industry in the Andhra Pradesh capital.

Vijetha bagged small to medium roles in about 15-20 films, being paired with comedians and supporting actors. But tiring of the advances made towards her during her one-year stint in movies, she returned to Jogipalem last March. Her parents were not happy as they had hoped to use her entry into films as a passport to riches.

Instead, Vijetha rejoined college and studied for a bachelor’s degree in Narsipatnam. She chanced upon tutor K. Srinivas and fell in love with him. When Vishalakshi and Vijayaratham objected to their plans to marry soon and urged her to return to films, the teenager and her tutor determined to get them out of the way.

The duo invited some friends to stay overnight at their house on August 13. After midnight, Vijetha helped her accomplices kill her parents with iron rods and stuffed their bodies into gunny bags. The friends — who were construction workers — and Vijetha and Srinivas hollowed out some space under the main hall and placed the bags there. Construction work was on at the house in any case, providing them perfect cover.

Vijetha continued to live in the house. The teenager and Srinivas told neighbours and relatives that her parents had gone to Hyderabad to visit a kin. But Vijayratham’s brother was not convinced and alerted the police who uncovered the murders after an inquiry.