Man Beaten To Death Over Theft Of Rs 20 Water Bottle

VIJAYAWADA: Four men were arrested on Wednesday as they beat up a 25-year-old man to death with sticks after tying him to an electric pole over the alleged theft of a water bottle worth Rs 20 from a pan shop in Vijayawada.

According to Patamata circle inspector Pavan Kishore, the victim, M. Sai Kumar was a native of Nalgonda in Telangana. He worked as a cook at a fast food centre in Moturi village in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district.

Kumar recently visited Vijayawada. At around 2.30 am on October 19, he allegedly tried to take a water bottle from the refrigerator at a pan shop on Patamata Donka Road. The owner was not present there.

A milk van driver who arrived to deliver milk packets noticed the incident and alerted the shop clerk. The clerk allegedly rushed to the spot with a hotel worker and two other men who were there to buy cigarettes. The four allegedly tied Kumar to an electric pole and beat him severely with sticks, resulting in his death on the spot.

Pedestrians who noticed Kumar lying on the ground initially thought he was under the influence of alcohol. Local residents later alerted the police, who reached the spot and found him dead with bruises across his body. The body was shifted to a government hospital for postmortem.

Police registered a murder case and took two days to trace Kumar’s family and inform them of his death. His body was subsequently handed over to the family.

The arrested accused were T. Ravi Shankar, S. Ayyappa, P. Naveen and Sai Praneeth. They were produced before a local court, which remanded them to judicial custody at the central jail in Vijayawada.