Copyright thehindu
The Hebbagodi police shot at a 45-year-old man, who was involved in two gruesome murders, when he allegedly attacked a policeman and tried to flee during the weapon recovery procedure at the Bommasandra crematorium in Bengaluru on Sunday. The accused, identified as Ravi Prasad Reddy from Gorantla village in Andhra Pradesh, was wanted in connection with the abduction and murder of Hebbagodi-based businessman Balappa Reddy. The incident took place on November 6. The accused earlier murdered Madesha, 40, a tea stall owner at his house and escaped in a scooter on November 4. M. Narayana, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Electronics City Division, said that Balappa Reddy, a landlord and owner of a workshop, was kidnapped from Bengaluru’s Jigani Ring Road, murdered the same day, and his body was later disposed of in a forest near Hosur in Tamil Nadu. The accused later called Balappa family and demanded ₹2 crore ransom for his release after committing the murder. Considering the gravity of the offence, the police formed a special team that tracked down the accused after confirming his involvement in both the offences. Elaborating the motive, Mr. Narayana said that the accused is one of the tenants of Balappa and was involved in trade and finance business and incurred huge losses. In order to recover the loss, he planned to kidnap Balappa for ransom and killed him when he resisted. While Ravi was taken to the crematorium for recovery of the weapon, he attacked head constable Ashok in a bid to escape, the police claimed. The inspector warned Ravi to stop and fired two rounds in the air before shooting at both his legs, the police said. Ravi sustained bullet injuries and collapsed. He was later taken to the hospital, along with the injured constable Ashok.
